The three keys to catching up on the Andic case

BarcelonaThey were months of total secrecy. Only a few people within the Mossos d'Esquadra knew that the death of the owner of Mango, Isak Andic, on December 14, 2024, was not being investigated as an accident; that they believed it could be a homicide, and that they suspected his son Jonathan. In fact, they even tapped the phone of the eldest son of the Andics for a season, but the measure did not yield results and the police opted to confiscate his phone. After a few months, on May 19, Jonathan Andic was arrested as the alleged perpetrator of his father's death; an action that only a few in Mossos also knew about in advance.

Suspicions began on the same day as the businessman's death. The police went to the scene and were surprised by the area where he had fallen. It is a point where there is a kind of ramp of several meters, already off the path, which leads to the void, about twenty minutes' walk from the center of Collbató. L'ARA has been able to retrace this route, which is not for experts. In the previous sections there are protective fences, but there is nothing there. This was practically the only place where a fall was fatal, according to police investigations.

Doubts intensified when Jonathan Andic was not entirely precise in his statements about the events. Initially, the agents attributed this to the shock of a son who had just lost his father. However, the investigation took a turn, especially with the discovery of messages on Isak Andic's mobile phone where his son told him things like: "I'm not surprised you thought I was capable of killing you."

With the progress of the investigation, the son's arrest, and the defense's involvement, information about this case has accumulated, which can be summarized in three main keys.

Jonathan Andic's version

If a person is accused of a crime, legally it can never be taken into account whether they limit themselves to answering their lawyer's questions or if they respond with monosyllables. In other words, they cannot be considered suspicious. However, several sources linked to the case were surprised when, after arresting him and bringing him before the court, Jonathan Andic limited himself to responding with monosyllables to his lawyer's questions, Cristóbal Martell. He did not reconstruct in detail what had happened. Thus, one of the keys to the case lies in the future statement of the eldest son of the Andics, which he has already announced he will make.

In part, his initial version of events is known through leaks of audio from his calls to 112, where he can be heard crying and distressed, saying that his father has fallen and they need to come and help him. But there are more elements to clarify. For example, he has always maintained that his relationship with his father was good or that his phone was stolen in Ecuador, things that the Mossos now find suspicious.

In initial statements, Jonathan said he had taken the route to Collbató two weeks before the events, but the Mossos discovered that he had taken the same route seven days before. The defense attributes this to a semantic confusion when counting the weeks, while the judge considers that Jonathan's trips to Collbató (three times a few days before his father's death) suggest possible "premeditation".

Furthermore, the loss of his phone in Ecuador – the device he was carrying on the day of the events – also fuels the judge's suspicions regarding possible evidence concealment.

The therapist and the environment

Messages such as "I'm not surprised you thought I was capable of killing you" were framed within therapy that the father and son were undergoing with a coach, as the ARA explained a few months ago. This therapy is the argument the defense uses to justify the tone of the communications between father and son, saying it was a "psychoanalytic metaphor". However, in the judge's opinion, the messages demonstrate that the relationship was not as good as Jonathan Andic described.

In the ruling, the judge suggests that the therapist and Jonathan Andic would have formed a kind of pincer movement to obtain an inheritance during the textile magnate's lifetime. Then, when the son discovered that his father wanted to create a foundation, he approached him again. The excursion was precisely to finalize their reconciliation. All of this was a process of "emotional manipulation", in the judge's opinion, who reiterates that father and son almost never went for walks together.

The magistrate has gone so far as to ask the Mossos to investigate whether the Andic's therapist could be involved in the crime. For this reason, she will testify this week. It is not clear if she is registered with a professional body and, therefore, it is not ruled out that she may not be able to claim professional secrecy, according to sources close to the case.

However, this week other people close to Andic will also testify, such as his sisters, his father's partner, or Mango executives. All of them, in their initial statements, which Jonathan's defense relies on, stated that the father-son relationship was good. Now, the judge wants them to elaborate.

The two hikers who helped Jonathan just after the fall and with whom a missed call was even made to get in touch are also expected to testify. Lawyer Martell criticizes that the Mossos did not take their statements at the time, and now the judge has ordered them to be identified via the cell towers. Sources close to the case, however, point out that Jonathan Andic initially said he had no contact information for the hikers, and this now also makes the Mossos suspicious. All in all, this will be a key week for the Andic case.

The footprint and reconstructions

The footprint Isak Andic left when he fell is another of the central points of the investigation. The Mossos (Catalan police) maintain that it was too deep to be a slip, which therefore opens the door to a possible struggle. The defense argues that the evidence on the mountain was not properly guarded and could be invalid. It also claims that Isak Andic had arthritis and defends himself with a previous fall of the businessman a few months earlier. Now, the judge has also requested access to the complete medical history of the deceased.

Another crucial issue in the investigation is how Isak Andic fell. He had no marks on his hands, which surprised investigators precisely because of the ramp before falling into the void. They consider that if he had slipped, he would surely have had time to try to grab onto it. Furthermore, he fell feet first, in a toboggan-like manner.

Analyzing Isak Andic's mobile phone, the Mossos have concluded that at the moment of falling, the businessman was still and not using the phone – at first, the son said his father was taking photos. On the other hand, the defense, with the reports present in the case, maintains that Andic stood still for 39 seconds, without "harmonic" movement, and then took two steps before falling, which they say is "compatible" with an accidental death.

Now, the judge has already authorized a key proceeding that will take place in the coming weeks: she has ordered a reconstruction of the events in situ, with Jonathan Andic also present. Furthermore, she has requested that the Central Unit for Missing Persons of the Mossos, who are experts in investigating through peripheral and inconclusive evidence, as is the case with crimes without a body or, now, with the Andic case, be included in the case.