The Madrid Provincial Court authorized judge Juan Carlos Peinado to investigate Begoña Gómez, wife of the president of the government, and her advisor Cristina Álvarez, for alleged embezzlement. In an order, the magistrates reject the appeal of the two defendants against the decision of the president of the Court of Instruction number 41 of Madrid to call them to testify for this crime.
The Madrid Court emphasizes that the behavior mentioned by the investigating judge in the contested order “seems to correspond to the criminal aspect of embezzlement”. “In the case, there are indications of a possible excess in her functions as assistant to the applicant”, he indicates, “without it being possible to reach any conclusion as to the continuation of the procedures of the intermediate phase or the dismissal of the case, since the investigation is still ongoing”.
The magistrates add that “probably Álvarez’s activity could be carried out twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, which certainly seems excessive, more typical of a friend interested in the lucrative business of the current applicant, than in the cold work of the person responsible for the diary and other protocol matters.”
On August 18, Judge Peinado agreed to charge the wife of Pedro Sánchez and Álvarez with the alleged crime of embezzlement of public funds for the hiring of his advisor in Moncloa.
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