The judge who could put Mazón in the dock

ValenciaWho is Nuria Ruiz Tobarra, the judge who is investigating the DANA case and who could put the former Minister of the Interior and Justice, Salomé Pradas, and the Valencian president, Carlos Mazón, in the dock? Although her name has been mentioned daily in numerous news stories for weeks, no image of her has yet been released. This relative anonymity is due to the fact that until recently she was an unknown person to the general public, but also to the media. The reasons are easy to understand: the magistrate presides over a court in a town not very well known outside the Valencian Community, such as Catarroja, and had not taken on any media cases. Two reasons to which another not inconsiderable one must be added, because according to people who have regular dealings with her, she is "the antithesis of a star judge."

Mother of three children, resident in Valencia and married to the also magistrate Jorge Martínez Ribera, Nuria Ruiz Tobarra has headed the court of first instance and investigation number 3 of Catarroja since 2007. Almost two decades in which, for many years, she has been responsible for investigation. The ARA has spoken with several lawyers who have had proceedings with her and who describe her as a very "calm, pleasant and close" person. This empathy is certified by relatives of victims of the DANA who have already gone to testify about the events of October 29 and who underline "her proximity and delicacy." They also explain that they feel comforted after having given their testimony and knowing that the case is "in her hands." "I have the feeling that she will help us to obtain justice," they add.

Despite recognizing her kind demeanor, some lawyers also warn that her procedures suffer from a certain "laxity and tend to accumulate delays." They also point out that she does not hesitate to file cases if she does not see very solid grounds and that she is reluctant to order provisional imprisonment. "Sometimes she has bounced the most complex issues off the prosecutor," they add. Unlike these opinions, other sources describe her as "technically very prepared" and a "tireless worker." In this sense, there are some lawyers who consider that "the exhaustive and methodical nature of the investigation she is carrying out is due to the fact that the magistrate has assumed that it is not just another process and that, therefore, she must get involved."