Spain’s former PM faces tax fraud inquiry as police find €1.3m of jewellery

The former Spanish prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is being investigated for possible tax fraud and smuggling after police discovered jewellery valued at more than €1.3m (£1.1m) while searching his office safe as part of a separate inquiry.

Zapatero, who led two socialist governments between 2004 and 2011, is already under investigation for alleged influence-peddling and other offences relating to the state bailout of the Spanish Plus Ultra airline during the Covid pandemic. He is alleged to have overseen “a hierarchical structure of influence-peddling”, whose purpose was “to obtain economic benefits through intermediation and the exercise of influence before public bodies in favour of third parties, mainly Plus Ultra”.

On Friday, the investigating judge at Spain’s highest criminal court, the Audiencia Nacional, said a new investigation had been launched after an expert assessment put the value of the jewellery, which includes necklaces, bracelets, rings and watches, at €1,323,915.

In a ruling explaining his decision, Judge José Luis Calama said the apparent absence of the necessary tax paperwork concerning the jewellery, which was found on 19 May, had led him to open a new investigation.

“The possession of high-value luxury goods, coupled with the lack of tax traceability regarding their acquisition, constitutes an objective and rational indication of the possible existence of significant tax fraud, since the acquisition of jewellery of the indicated value necessarily generates tax obligations, whether in terms of VAT, property transfer tax, inheritance and gift tax, or personal income tax, depending on the nature of the legal transaction,” he said.

A spokesperson for Zapatero said some of the jewellery had been inherited by the former prime minister and his wife, while other pieces had been picked up on trips. The spokesperson – who had originally claimed the jewellery was worth €30,000 to €50,000 – apologised on Friday for unintentionally misleading people and said that he and the former prime minister would both provide Calama with an explanation.

Zapatero, who is due to appear before the judge next week, has denied any wrongdoing.

After the opening of the investigation into his role in the Plus Ultra bailout, Zapatero released a video in which he insisted on his innocence and stated his willingness to cooperate with the investigation. “I’d like to reaffirm that all my public and private activity has always been conducted with absolute respect for the law,” he said, adding he had never carried out “any action” relating to the airline’s rescue.

Zapatero’s socialist successor, Pedro Sánchez, is facing a slew of corruption cases involving his wife, his brother, his party and his administration.