Police reveal extent of bribes to ruling party
Spanish police investigating one of the country's biggest ever corruption scandals have released a list of 'gifts' including plasma TVs, Cuban cigars and Mont Blanc pens allegedly given to top Popular Party officials to curry favour in return for public contracts.
The Economic and Fiscal Crimes Unit (UDEF) presented the details to the courts on Tuesday as part of the ongoing investigation into the complicated Gürtel affair, in which senior members of the government are alleged to have received presents and cash backhanders in return for public contracts.
The Gürtel leader, Francisco Correa, is said to have given politicians 'presents' including Habana cigars (€450); a Mont Blanc Pen; €6,000 of plasma TVs; smartphones; €500 crates of wine; trips to DisneyLand; holidays to Cancún, New York, Kenya and Mauritius; and luxury hotel accommodation worth over €1,000 per night.
The UDEF documents also show that €25 million ($33.8 million) was held in unregistered accounts between 1996 and 2009, according to national daily The Huffington Post.
Former Popular Party minister and President of Asturias, Francisco Álvarez Cascos, is one of the people named in the document. Others include the infamous former Popular Party treasurer Luis Bárcenas, another former party treasurer (Álvaro Lapuerta), and PP Members of Parliament Juan Carlos Vera and Juan José Matarí.
The Popular Party is also accused of charging events organized by Gurtel to the FAES think-tank by using false invoices.
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The Economic and Fiscal Crimes Unit (UDEF) presented the details to the courts on Tuesday as part of the ongoing investigation into the complicated Gürtel affair, in which senior members of the government are alleged to have received presents and cash backhanders in return for public contracts.
The Gürtel leader, Francisco Correa, is said to have given politicians 'presents' including Habana cigars (€450); a Mont Blanc Pen; €6,000 of plasma TVs; smartphones; €500 crates of wine; trips to DisneyLand; holidays to Cancún, New York, Kenya and Mauritius; and luxury hotel accommodation worth over €1,000 per night.
The UDEF documents also show that €25 million ($33.8 million) was held in unregistered accounts between 1996 and 2009, according to national daily The Huffington Post.
Former Popular Party minister and President of Asturias, Francisco Álvarez Cascos, is one of the people named in the document. Others include the infamous former Popular Party treasurer Luis Bárcenas, another former party treasurer (Álvaro Lapuerta), and PP Members of Parliament Juan Carlos Vera and Juan José Matarí.
The Popular Party is also accused of charging events organized by Gurtel to the FAES think-tank by using false invoices.
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