The three legal cases against the Barcelona child abuse network now total 16 suspects.

BarcelonaThe three legal cases opened against the Barcelona pedophilia mega-network total 16 suspects, including The 40-year-old electrician for whom the Prosecutor's Office has requested a sentence of 107 years in prison to rape and record child pornography at the expense of a minor in the care of the General Directorate of Child and Adolescent Care (DGAIA). In parallel, and after 48 hours of silence since the accusation became known, the Generalitat has announced that it has opened an information file to review the DGAIA's reaction when it detected, in 2021, the repeated rapes of a 12-year-old girl under the custody of the administration by a man who facilitated the rape of other pedophiles.

The magnitude of the case has led the 7th investigating judge of Barcelona to divide it into three proceedings. The first case is the only one in which the judicial investigation has already concluded and in which the Prosecutor's Office has already filed an indictment. The investigating judge is investigating the crimes of sexual assault, production and possession of child pornography, inducing child pornography, and displaying pornography to a minor, according to the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC).

In the second case, the electrician himself and 10 other men are being investigated for assaulting the same minor under the custody of the DGAIA and a boy. In addition to the electrician, another of those investigated in this case is also in pretrial detention. The other nine investigated in the second case, the TSJC adds, are on provisional release in order to make themselves available to the court whenever required.

In the third case opened in relation to this pedophilia ring, there are six people under investigation in total, including the electrician. The other five are on provisional release with precautionary measures, including restraining orders from the victims and a ban on working in jobs that involve contact with minors. In the investigation of this third case, five new victims have been identified so far as a result of the analysis of the suspects' electronic devices.

New investigations into child pornography

In fact, individual proceedings have been opened against each of the five most recently investigated individuals for possession of child pornography. This decision was made after child pornography was found on their devices that is not related to the case being investigated by Barcelona Investigation Unit 7, but rather affects other minors. The new investigations could even end up in the courts of other cities, depending on where the events took place.

This case is one of the largest known cases of pedophilia in Catalonia, and when the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) investigated it, they already warned that the number of those involved reached thirty, despite the fact that they had not been able to identify almost half of the men. In fact, judicial sources already indicated to the ARA that So far the investigation has only been able to confirm the identity of two men., both of whom are in pretrial detention, with sufficient authority to prosecute them.

Social Rights Investigation

After 48 hours of silence, the Generalitat (Catalan Government) has announced that it has opened an information file to review the DGAIA's reaction when it detected the case in 2021. The Department of Social Rights and Inclusion has not commented on the attacks nor has it explained whether the minor is still in a center, awaiting her appearance.

In a brief statement, the department reports that the minister has requested to appear before Parliament to explain the preliminary conclusions of this information file opened following the case. However, the ministry has not reported whether an internal investigation was opened in 2021. According to the statement, the assaults on the minor were reported "thanks to the intervention of the school's educational staff," who, upon suspecting some indications, activated the relevant protocols. However, judicial sources indicate that the case began to be investigated following a warning from a man who rejected the main accused's proposal., Several sources in the sector had recently explained to ARA that There is no guide on how to act in a similar situation. Sources from the department clarify that professionals at juvenile centers are "trained in the detection of trauma" that often affects this child due to family circumstances before they are abandoned.

Everything points to a man who was 40 years old at the time of the events, (currently 45), an electrician by profession, leading the pedophilia ring. He is also accused of repeatedly raping the girl, who at the time was under the care of the DGAIA (National Directorate of Investigation), although her legal guardians remained the parents. The Prosecutor's Office is seeking 107 years in prison for this Barcelona electrician for repeatedly raping the girl and for organizing the gang sexual assaults of a dozen teenagers, which he recorded on video and distributed online. During a search of the prime suspect's home, the Mossos d'Esquadra (Spanish police) found 100,000 photographs and 20,000 videos of assaults and pornographic images involving minors, as if it were "a pornographic film."

Workers in the sector report that children living in the centers are "easy and propitious victims" for sexual predators and pedophiles because they often seek out "savior adults" to forget the harsh reality they have to live through, who, through deception, offer them a break time in lieu of a few hours of recess with sex. There is some control in the centers regarding the use of social media or schedules, but children come and go to school or extracurricular activities.

The cases of pedophilia coincide with a time of change at the DGAIA. A few weeks ago, the councilor went Isabel Carrasco at the head of the DGAIA, just six months after appointing her, and replaced her with Manager of the Social Services Department of the Barcelona Provincial Council, Josep Muñoz. The DGAIA cares for more than 19,000 minors in Catalonia, and of these, approximately 9,000 have been reported as abandoned and are living separately from their families, either with other relatives, in foster families, or in centers as a protective measure.