The wife of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has been ordered to stand trial on corruption charges, a court order issued Saturday said.
Begoña Gómez is accused of using her position as head of government to secure work contracts.
The case is one of several corruption cases facing the Prime Minister’s centre-left minority government.
What do we know about the court’s decision?
The Madrid court agreed that there was enough evidence to bring Gómez’s case to trial before a jury.
Investigating judge Juan Carlos Peñado asked Gómez to surrender his passport, banned him from leaving the country and ordered him to report to court twice a month.
The court said that “instructions will be issued to all border posts and civil and military airports” to ensure that Gomez remains on domestic soil.
A trial date has not yet been set.
Sánchez’s socialist PSOE party reacted to the verdict on X, saying: “[Gomez] Had to suffer judicial and political harassment for two years. “Today’s development is another step in that process.”
How did the case against Gomez unfold?
The case began with a complaint filed by Manos Limpias (Clean Hands), a legal pressure group founded by a lawyer with ties to the far right.
An investigation was launched in April 2024 to determine whether Gómez had abused her position as Sánchez’s wife for personal gain.
It focuses on an academic chair at the Complutense University of Madrid that Gómez co-directed, as well as allegations that he used public resources and his connections to pursue private business interests.
Gomez was formally charged in April with embezzlement, influence peddling, corruption in business deals and misappropriation of funds.
He has denied the allegations, while Sanchez has repeatedly refused to step down and call for early elections.
Other scams involve associates and family
Several senior people close to Sanchez, including the PSOE’s number three and his former transport minister, are also under investigation over alleged bribes linked to public works contracts, oil and gas deals and the purchase of COVID-19 masks.
Everyone involved denies any wrongdoing.
Separately, Spain’s High Court is investigating former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero over allegations that he led a lobbying network that profited from influencing public officials on behalf of third parties, including the airline Plus Ultra.
Zapatero denies the claims.
The cases threaten to topple Sanchez’s fragile coalition government, which came to power in 2018 promising to clean up Spanish politics after toppling the conservative Popular Party (PP) in a no-confidence vote over its own corruption scandal.
Edited by: Louis Olofse
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