The Criminal Court number 10 of Madrid sentenced the person who was director of heritage at Madrid City Hall under the PP governments between 2004 and 2012, Amalia Castro-Rialto three months in prison and a fine of 1,800 euros for the offense of damage to historical heritage, in particular against the central palace of the Duchess of Sueca.
The former senior official must bear the costs of the legal process and compensate the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage of the Community of Madrid of the amount determined during the execution of the sentence due to the worsening of the damage detected in the building in the Special Plan of 2005 until the partial demolition order of 2013, with subsidiary civil liability of Madrid City Council .
This is indicated in a resolution to which Europa Press had access and put forward by the newspaper The countryin which the judge addresses the penalty a mitigating delay highly qualified staff. There is an appeal against the decision.
Undue delays are appreciated given that the investigation was opened a long time ago nine years and the order to close the investigation was issued in 2023, they therefore consider that the handling of the case is excessive and that the accused “does not have to bear the consequences of this delay”, according to the judge .
The 7,200 square meters of Palace of the Duchess of Suecaat number 2 Duque de Alba street, a few meters from Cascorro square, they have been empty for more than twenty years. Its facade is famous for being the door to the television series “The Ministry of Time”, and its interior is in a poor state of conservation.
