The government is targeting the DGAIA: "It needs a profound transformation."

BarcelonaThe Directorate General for Child and Adolescent Care (DGAIA) is under scrutiny for alleged irregularities in the payment of financial and housing benefits to young people who have left care. uncovered by the ARA in January and expanded in March Now the case of the minor under guardianship who was raped by a pedophile ring has been added. The regional minister for Social Rights and Inclusion, Mònica Martínez Bravo, announced on Wednesday that she would appear before Parliament, and this Thursday, Junts, PSC, ERC, and Comuns have called for a commission of inquiry in Parliament to delve deeper into the "crisis" in the management of the DGAIA. "It is evident that the DGAIA needs a profound transformation, and this has been evident for many years," admitted the socialist minister from Balaguer. case of pedophilia It coincides with a time of change in the institution. In March, the councilor resigned.Isabel Carrasco at the helm of the DGAIA, just six months after appointing her, and replaced her with theManager of the Social Services Department of the Barcelona Provincial Council, Josep Muñoz. Two months earlier, irregularities began to emerge surrounding several entities, an issue being investigated by the Anti-Fraud Office, the Audit Office, and the Ombudsman.

The case was reported by a worker who, in January 2024, discovered that a former ward of the SPAE Resilis Pisos +18 Años service was receiving a financial benefit and a housing benefit from the Generalitat (Catalan Government), when, in fact, the former ward—of Senegalese origin—had been working for months. The complainant, who became a protected figure under the Anti-Fraud Protection Act, even verified how the Foundation had changed the young Senegalese man's housing arrangement, claiming that he was looking for work and it would be better for him to live in another apartment, even though he had been working outside of Catalonia for months.

When the worker alerted his superior about the case, he was urged not to expose the "malpractice and misappropriation of public funds" committed by the housing service. In fact, in the conversation he had with his coordinator, he understood that this was not an isolated case and that public agencies were aware of it. "This is fundamental misappropriation of public funds," the young man warned his coordinator. "Yes, yes, I know," was the response.

Two months later, The ARA uncovered a second case linked to the DGAIA: The complaint filed by three former employees of an organization in the province of Girona that had half-empty apartments for young people linked to job placement programs (PIL). In reality, despite there being empty spaces, the organization charged as if the apartments were completely full, and thus received all the money provided by the Catalan government for these boys and girls. This was done, according to various witnesses, by "falsifying the young people's signatures" to confirm that they were "still in service," that is, that they were still living in the apartment and that the organization worked closely with them, although this was not true.

A massive pedophilia network

This week a new scandal shook the DGAIA after SER Catalunya brought forward the request for 107 years TLM, a 40-year-old man, was sentenced to prison for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl under the care of the Catalan government and setting up a pedophile ring with other men to rape her while he filmed it. Police also found more than 10,000 images and almost 2,000 videos of child pornography on the accused. The attacks on this minor began in 2020, when she was living in a juvenile center due to bullying at school and her mother's illness.

As already published by ARAMartínez Bravo has announced that the government will appear as a private prosecutor in this case of the minor under guardianship who was the victim of a prostitution scheme. For now, the department has opened a case and hopes to "reach the end of it." Regarding the irregularities detected in the contracting of certain entities, the minister announced that a transformation plan will soon be made public, and claimed that Salvador Illa's government was the first to intervene.

Commission of Inquiry in Parliament

Prior to Martínez Bravo's remarks from Lleida, Carles Puigdemont's party had made its move by announcing the creation of a commission of inquiry in Parliament—which will require the support of other parties to move forward. Junts believes that the crisis of recent months linked to the DGAIA "has worsened after learning that a minor under its care was raped by pedophiles" and, as they explain in a statement, they want to "get to the bottom of the matter." In the afternoon, the PSC, ERC, and Comunes also agreed to the creation of a commission of inquiry into the DGAIA's activities since 2011.

The three groups are calling for an investigation into the "tension" of the child protection system between 2016 and 2020 and the "consequent" impact on benefits and oversight mechanisms. They will also require all information on cases of sexual violence against children under the care of this department, as well as an analysis of the guarantees for children's rights and improvements to the foster care and guardianship system. If created, this commission also aims to study "possible changes" to be implemented within the DGAIA and review its available resources.

The Minister of Youth and Children, Sira Rego, also emphasized this Thursday that a "very serious error" has been committed in the case of the 12-year-old girl under the guardianship of the DGAIA (National Directorate of Public Education) who has been a victim of this pedophilia ring, and she raised the need to "modify everything structurally to prevent these types of cases." She also stated that the ministry is in contact with the Generalitat (Catalan Government) and the Catalan government delegation, and that "all internal procedures" have been initiated to address them. "I have profound confidence in the police investigation and, where appropriate, in the judicial investigation," she added.