The Spanish government triggers the change of leadership at the UCO of the Civil Guard

MadridA reshuffle is underway at the Central Operational Unit (UCO) of the Civil Guard, instigated by the Spanish government. The Council of Ministers will approve tomorrow the promotion of Colonel Rafael Yuste Arenes to Brigadier General, which will entail his departure as head of the UCO, according to reports. Eldiario.es and government sources confirm to ARA. The UCO is the specialized unit that, among other things, is participating in the investigation of the legal cases surrounding Pedro Sánchez – for example, prepared the report which led to the indictment of Santos Cerdán or accredited that the Attorney General deleted the messages from his mobile phone the day the Supreme Court indicted him—. Rafael Yuste had been in charge of the UCO for two and a half years—he arrived in June 2023 replacing Alfonso López Malo—and has now been promoted after passing the course and ranking first in his class in the evaluation.

"It is a promotion that falls within the normal internal promotion procedures," the same sources explained to this newspaper. Specifically, Rafael Yuste will be promoted to the rank of Brigadier General along with another colonel, and both will join three other colonels who have been promoted to Brigadier General during the current promotion cycle. After evaluating his technical training and his previous assignments in the Operational Support Group and the National Security Department, Yuste will soon join the Directorate of Technical Services of the Civil Guard.

However, one of the key figures of the UCO The official who has come to light in recent months will remain in his post. He is Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Balas, a subordinate of Rafael Yuste, and he will continue to lead the Department of Economic Crimes and Anti-Corruption. His name appeared in the recording of a meeting held by the so-called plumber Leire Díez, from the PSOE, is really the one directing much of the activity related to the Spanish president's environment.

The Supreme Court is scrutinizing Koldo's audio recordings

Meanwhile, the investigation into the Cerdán case continues at the Supreme Court. Investigating Judge Leopoldo Puente summoned four experts from the Civil Guard's Criminalistics Service and the two experts for Santos Cerdán's defense to testify regarding the authenticity and origin of the audio recordings made by Koldo García, which formed the basis of the UCO report that led to the former [police officer's] conviction.

First, in September, the Civil Guard did not identify Nothing that showed "alterations, manipulations, or anomalous behavior," although it was noted that some audio recordings were edited "immediately after recording" and that one of the analyzed recorders lacked date and time metadata, which "limits the traceability" of the files. Subsequently, last week, Santos Cerdán's defense questioned this version and He submitted his own report which demonstrated a "converging set of technical, temporal, structural, and methodological inconsistencies." Their analysis of the file metadata showed that someone could have edited, reconstructed, or transferred the audio recordings after they were made.

Now, the judge considers it "relevant" to know—"to the extent technically possible"—whether the conversations reflected in the audio files "were recorded directly on the devices where they were found" or could have come "from other audio files," and whether the files are "authentic" and whether their existence can be ruled out. "Given the discrepancies between the various reports submitted to the case, it is necessary to summon the experts in order to clarify, complete, or specify the results of their analyses," he concludes in a brief ruling. The six will have to testify on Thursday, December 11.