Zapatero's jewels have been making headlines for days and, since this Friday, they are the subject of a new separate piece in the Plus Ultra case at the National Court. Judge José Luis Calama has agreed to also investigate the former Spanish president for the possession of these valuable objects because he considers that there are indications of alleged tax and smuggling offenses.there are indications of alleged tax and smuggling offenses. The basis for his decision is the preliminary appraisal of the jewels – located in the office of the former PSOE leader – which have been valued at 1,323,915 euros. The appraisal report, to which ARA has had access, analyzes the estimated market price (including taxes) of up to 79 pieces of jewelry, among which necklaces worth more than 220,000 euros and earrings worth 80,000 euros stand out.

Moviment Sumar –Yolanda Díaz's party– has set course for its third general assembly in three years to update its roadmap. The conclave, which will be held on July 11, will arrive at a time when the formation is immersed in an internal crisis that has erupted after two significant resignations from the executive that have highlighted a fratricidal war for power. One of the main missions of the extraordinary congress will be to choose the two people who are to lead the party. But the formation will also have to approve the political-organizational report. One of the issues to which the draft refers is the alliance policy that Sumar must weave, and it directly alludes to "the sovereignist left," which in Catalonia is led by Esquerra Republicana. "We will not build a common entity with forces that have different ideas of the State from ours, but we can build a common program and a conjunctural alliance," the document states.

The PSOE has been forced to get used to surprises. The latest jolt of a stormy legislature has been caused by the jewels that the Spanish police found in José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero's office almost a month ago. The Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF) searched it on the judge's orders, who places the former Spanish president at the forefront of an influence peddling scheme. But the judicial horizon is becoming even more difficult after the appraisal of the jewels valued them at 1.3 million euros and has led to a separate case to investigate him for smuggling and tax evasion. So far, the investigation pointed, among other crimes, to criminal organization, influence peddling, money laundering, and document forgery. Zapatero's spokesperson stated a few days ago that they would be valued at 50,000 euros at most, and the former president's secretary told the Spanish police that they came from Zapatero's wife's inheritance and from gifts from trips.

Moviment Sumar is immersed in an earthquake. As a parenthesis, a first note: it is the party founded by Yolanda Díaz three years ago and which, together with Comuns, Esquerra Unida and Més Madrid, is designing a new alliance to run in coalition in the general elections scheduled for 2027. The formation was formally led by Yolanda Díaz until the current second vice-president of the Spanish government resigned the day after the blow in the European elections of June 2024 and distanced herself from the day-to-day organic work. "I have the feeling that in these months I have not done what I should have done," she acknowledged at the time. Last February, amid the reconfiguration movements to the left of the PSOE, Díaz announced that she would not run again as a candidate for Moncloa and left a clear path for the four parties in the platform to choose a new figurehead. But one of the actors, Sumar, is going through one of its weakest moments after the until now organization secretary, Laura Moreno, has resigned with a very harsh letter against the leadership. This is a departure that adds to the recent resignation of David Comas as communication secretary, which had not been made public. All this comes as Moviment Sumar is about to hold its General Assembly, the third in three years, to set the party's course. It began to be prepared three months ago and will finally be held in Madrid on Saturday, July 11. "We have an important assembly ahead of us for which we want to make an effort for serenity and care," defend sources from the formation. "We know that it has not been like that in recent days and for this reason we would like to apologize," they add.

The State Attorney General's Office, led since December by Teresa Peramato, has confirmed to the judge in the Leire Díez case that the so-called PSOE "plumber" met twice with the right-hand man of her predecessor, Álvaro García Ortiz, along with lawyer Jacobo Teijelo, who is currently part of Santos Cerdán's defense and is also under investigation by the National Court. The interlocutor was Diego Villafañe, who was the deputy prosecutor of the Attorney General's Technical Secretariat and who "later informed" the State Attorney General of the two meetings. The first meeting took place on March 6, 2025, and prosecutor Beatriz López Pesquera also participated. Prosecutorial sources explain that Jacobo Teijelo informed of "the existence of a series of facts presumably committed by third parties that could have criminal relevance." Subsequently, between late March and early April, a second meeting took place, in which Teijelo communicated his "intention to file several complaints with the Attorney General's Office related to those facts".

José Manuel Villarejo is a name that allows a bridge to be established between the Kitchen case – the alleged operation to steal compromising information about the PP's slush fund from Luis Bárcenas – and the Leire Díez case – the alleged maneuvers to "obstruct" judicial proceedings that implicate Pedro Sánchez. The retired commissioner continued testifying this morning at the trial that has been ongoing for two months about the espionage against the former PP treasurer, but before accessing the National Court, he stopped for ten minutes with journalists. Without clarifying whether he met with the so-called "plumber" of the PSOE, he presented himself as a victim: "Throughout all these years, the alleged sewers have gone against me and have tried to destroy me," he denounced. And he recalled that the socialists, who are popular accusers in the Kitchen case, are asking for more prison years than the Prosecutor's Office: "Do I reach an agreement with the PSOE and the PSOE becomes a person to give me more years in prison? Don't they realize it's stupid?" he asked ironically.

For the first time in history, the Pope has delivered a speech to Congress. In a hemicycle dressed in gala for the occasion and on a visit that he wanted to serve as a "gesture of closeness" towards Spain, Leo XIV has once again fully entered the Spanish political debate to fundamentally amend the postulates of the far-right regarding immigration. He has once again referred to the "tragic migratory drama" and has reproached the national priority that the PP and Vox have recently agreed upon in the autonomous communities. "Where a person is discriminated against because of their national, ethnic, religious or linguistic origin, the universal principle of the equal dignity of all human beings is seriously violated," he proclaimed. "The situation of migrants and refugees demands a response that looks at people," he added. Likewise, he has put forward a "double demand for social justice" with immigrants: they must be offered "safe and legal pathways," a "respectful welcome," and "real opportunities for integration," and, in parallel, the "right to stay in their own land" must be promoted by working to ensure that "no one has to leave their home." Precisely on Thursday, the Pope will travel to the Canary Islands, which is the final destination of the most dangerous migratory route in Europe.

The Leire case has become a real ticking time bomb for the PSOE. The trickle of information about the investigation and the appearance of names being dragged through the mud has forced the socialists to step forward to distance themselves from what the judge believes was a "criminal structure" to "destabilize" judicial investigations. The mantra repeated in Ferraz is that the accused made "use of the PSOE's name in vain." Pedro Sánchez has finally spoken out, stating during an official visit to the Balkans that everything was done behind his back: "I was never informed about Leire Díez's adventures. I never endorsed and never had knowledge of something I would never have tolerated," he said from Montenegro. The Spanish president acknowledged that everything that has come to light fills him with "disappointment, concern, and indignation" and announced that the PSOE's legal team is studying "what actions will be taken" in "defense of the party's honorability and integrity."

The summary of the Leire Díez case, which is being investigated in the National Court, includes the recording of two meetings held by the so-called PSOE's plumber with Francisco Martínez, who was the number two to minister Jorge Fernández Díaz as Secretary of State for Security and who is currently sitting on the defendant's bench for the Kitchen case. On July 15, 2024, he himself told Leire Díez how Gonzalo Boye – Carles Puigdemont's lawyer – and Javier Pérez Dolset – who is also under investigation – had offered him to be included in the amnesty law. As can be heard in the recording to which ARA has had access, it was the businessman who contacted him to put on the table a "collaboration" under which, in return, he would have to "give explanations" and "recognize the authenticity" of some documents to the investigation commission on Operation Catalonia. He was surprised by it all: "It seems strange to me, I didn't see any possibility that I could be included in the amnesty in legal and political terms, but I thought I had nothing to lose by sitting down. And I sat down many times with the businessman Javier and the lawyer Gonzalo," he explained.

David Sánchez's anticipated statement at the trial over his hiring at the Badajoz Provincial Council lasted 10 minutes and 20 seconds. He was only questioned by his lawyer, Emilio Cortés, who asked him 25 questions about his office, the change in his job title, and the hiring of a friend who helped him. Sánchez, however, made no mention of how he obtained the job in 2017. He also did not allude at any time to his brother and the President of the Spanish government. In fact, in the statements of the rest of the accused and witnesses of the day, there was a common element: no one knew - according to what they said - that Pedro Sánchez had a brother.

The supposed PSOE plot led by Santos Cerdán and Leire Díez also showed interest in the amnesty law. A 372-page Civil Guard report, which ARA has accessed, contains references to the law and the judicial persecution of independence supporters. Specifically, the Central Operative Unit (UCO) found a Word document prepared in November 2024 by the so-called PSOE plumber" who alluded directly to José Manuel Villarejo. It stated that the retired Spanish police commissioner, who these days is on trial for the Kitchen case, had the "proof that would demonstrate the corruption" of Manuel Marchena, who was the president of the trial of the Procés and was one of the judges who blocked the amnesty for Oriol Junqueras, Jordi Turull, Dolors Bassa, and Raül Romeva –Carles Puigdemont, Toni Comín, and Lluís Puig were also not granted amnesty by decision of Pablo Llarena–.

The Central Operative Unit (UCO) of the Civil Guard concludes that Santos Cerdán, Leire Díez, and other individuals formed a group to promote a “set of indicatively criminal actions” with the aim of “protecting the interests at stake in a series of judicial cases” affecting the PSOE and, “directly or indirectly,” Pedro Sánchez or “certain members” of the Spanish government. This is one of the elements contained in one of the reports to which ARA had access and which forms part of the summary of the case being investigated by the judge of the National Court, Santiago Pedraz.

José Manuel Villarejo was the protagonist of the day in the trial of the Kitchen case. The retired commissioner of the Spanish police, who has been parading through the courts for years and is part of the patriotic police leadership, spent three uninterrupted hours answering the prosecutor's questions in a convoluted statement in which he dedicated himself to shooting right and left and put several names on the table. One of the notable ones was that of Mariano Rajoy, whom he accused of benefiting from the illegal espionage of Luis Bárcenas: "He took advantage of this official and correct operation that was to locate assets abroad in case there was anything that affected him. All those who are charged were deceived by the genius of Mr. Rajoy, who resolves everything with Cardhu [a whisky]," he said. "Possibly, he wanted to jump on the bandwagon, take advantage of the matter and 'If there's anything from my [business], I want it too,'" he added later. Previously, he assured that the former president of the Spanish government asked him "through third parties" to inform him "directly" of his activity because he "did not trust" what Minister Jorge Fernández Díaz would tell him.

If the previous Spanish legislature (2019-2023) was marked by judicial cases against the independence movement, the current one has become a real judicial minefield for the PSOE. The common thread between the two was, moreover, the amnesty, which Pedro Sánchez pledged to approve to secure the votes of ERC and Junts for his investiture. Although its implementation, two years after it was approved, has not yet been completed – with more than a hundred politicians, activists, and public officials with pending proceedings – one of the tangible effects of the measure has been the anger of the political and judicial right over the socialists' concession. In fact, the legislature began with constant protests in front of the PSOE headquarters encouraged by the far-right and also by PP officials.

Nobody questions that Gabriel Rufián has established himself as an undisputed benchmark for the left throughout the State: he is, after all, the fourth best-rated politician in Spain and the preferred by Catalans. ERC's spokesperson in Congress has long made an uninhibited call – and discredited by the leadership of their partyLast week, Gabriel Rufián took another step and

Jorge Fernández Díaz and Francisco Martínez have buried the hatchet and, denial after denial, have executed a non-aggression pact with all the trimmings. After two months of trial and more than 150 witnesses, the two main defendants in the Kitchen case have entered the scene: they have followed the planned script and have denied any involvement in the espionage against Luis Bárcenas. The Prosecutor's Office is requesting 15 years in prisonfor the former Minister of the Interior and the former Secretary of State for Security. Their statements have shown a pacification that was non-existent during the investigation, many points of connection, and a clear contradiction. The common denominator has been to distance themselves from the state's underbelly. Jorge Fernández Díaz stated that he became aware of the Kitchen operation, "like any ordinary person," in late 2015, when "it began to appear" in the media: "Until then, I had not heard of it from above, or below, or from the right, or from the left. No one had spoken to me about it," he assured. Francisco Martínez also denied ordering a operation against the former PP treasurer: "I never ordered investigations into anything," he said.

"It cannot be allowed for any person, whoever they may be, to develop their professional aspirations using public resources, to the detriment of other more qualified individuals or other more pressing needs." After a year of investigation, this was one of the conclusions that led Judge Beatriz Biedma to send David Sánchez, nine officials from the Diputación de Badajoz, and also the then leader of the PSOE in Extremadura to trial for the crimes of prevarication and influence peddling. The popular prosecutions are requesting three years in prison for the brother of the Spanish president. Under scrutiny is the creation of his job at the Diputación de Badajoz, which allegedly was created to be directly awarded to him, and the hiring of a friend who "unofficially" helped him from Moncloa. During the preliminary proceedings, Sánchez's brother's lawyer, Emilio Cortés, alleged that the investigation was "prospective" and had a "political inspiration." "The root is rotten," he lamented. And he reproached the popular prosecutions for wanting to conduct an "scrutiny" or "historical déjà vu" about a hiring from nine years ago: "A procedure that has never been appealed by any administrator, in such a way that we will search to see if we find any flaw," he concluded.

One year and one day after Leire Díez, known as the PSOE's plumber, burst into the news, her name has once again been strongly heard. In the last 366 days, Santos Cerdán has resigned as number 3 of the PSOE, has gone to prison and has been released, and Díez has gone from anonymity to the political forefront. And now the National Court has definitively connected their paths. Judge Santiago Pedraz believes that, along with other people, they concocted a network with the aim of "systematically and continuously destabilizing and hindering" any judicial case that could splash Pedro Sánchez. Santos Cerdán, who was the "leader" and made the "strategic" decisions, commissioned Leire Díez in April 2024 to "coordinate and execute" all actions. The plan involved offering "remunerations or favors" to Civil Guard officers, investigators, or prosecutors "in exchange for information or acts contrary to the exercise of their duties." The focus was particularly on judges who were beginning to investigate Pedro Sánchez's wife and brother.

On February 23, 2026, a judge from Madrid sent the case that led to the impeachment of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero to the National Court. The case had resurfaced after France and Switzerland sent information about an ongoing investigation in which Plus Ultra appeared as a "client" of a criminal organization dedicated to money laundering. The magistrate pointed out that Rodolfo Reyes – majority shareholder of the airline and in the crosshairs of the United States– and other airline executives allegedly orchestrated a plan since 2020 to "appropriate clean money from public subsidies." As the alleged crimes were reportedly committed outside of Spain, the National Court is competent to investigate them, which is why José Luis Calama is now leading the investigation.

8:17 AM, May 19. The police arrive with a court order at number 35 Ferraz street, first floor left. It is the office of former president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. He is not there, they are opened by "doña Gertrudis" –his secretary, Gertrudis Alcázar–, who is the person who will be present during the entire search. She collaborates with the officers, whom she voluntarily lets in, and they begin to search all the premises: five offices, three empty rooms, two bathrooms, a meeting room, and an office. This is according to the report included in the Plus Ultra case file, which ARA has accessed, which describes the former president's office as an “operational management center” and a “nerve center for receiving and sending instructions” from Zapatero. However, according to the police, when it came to "sensitive" operations, there was another center: the former president's own home.