Álvaro Garcia Ortiz He became the first state attorney general to be indicted by the Supreme Court, an unprecedented event in Spain.
The High Court opens proceedings against García Ortiz to determine whether he committed the crime of revealing secrets given the dissemination of information on the procedure for alleged tax fraud of Alberto González Amador, associate of the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso.
Below you will find a guide containing all the keys to understanding the High Court’s resolution. Are you going to resign? What will the Supreme Court’s decision lead to? Why is he being investigated? What do the government and the opposition think?
What is charged
Revelation of secrets. The Supreme Court unanimously agreed to open an investigation against the State Attorney General, Álvaro García Ortiz, for the alleged crime of revealing secrets, issuing a press release detailing the tax fraud procedure in which is immersed the businessman González Amador, the boyfriend of Isabel Díaz Ayuso.
This is an unprecedented measure, since it is the first time that the head of the public prosecutor’s office has been indicted.
The offense of revealing secrets, characterized by article 417 of the Penal Code, punishes “the authority or public agent who reveals secrets or information of which he is aware because of his employment or his function and who does not shall not be disclosed.
In this case, you face a fine of 12 to 18 months and a special ban on exercising employment or public office for a period of one to three years.
“If the disclosure referred to in the preceding paragraph causes serious harm to the public cause or to a third party, the penalty will be imprisonment for one to three years and a special ban on employment or public office for a period of three at five years old. years.”, says the Penal Code.
If it concerns secrets belonging to an individual, the penalties will be imprisonment of two to four years, a fine of twelve to eighteen months and suspension from employment or public service for a period of one to three years.
What does the file consist of?
Complaint from Ayuso’s boyfriend. The investigation against the Attorney General will focus on the information note published on March 14 by the Madrid Provincial Prosecutor’s Office, the dissemination of which was ensured by García Ortiz himself.
In this document, it was revealed that it was Ayuso’s boyfriend who had suggested a deal to the prosecutor in her case and not the other way around, as a national newspaper had published, although this was not true.
This statement, sent to the press, included, exactly dated, extracts from conversations between e-mail between González Amador’s lawyer and the representative of the Public Prosecutor’s Office who accused him of two crimes of fraud against the Treasury.
It was then that Ayuso’s boyfriend filed a complaint against the state attorney general for an alleged crime of revealing secrets. Other entities and individuals, such as the leader of the Manos Médicas union, Miguel Bernad, presented theirs.
Are you going to resign?
He holds on to his position. The Attorney General announced in a press release that he would continue to exercise his “responsibilities” despite the accusation, because “it is the least burdensome and most prudent for the institution in the medium and long term” and “it simply strengthens the independence of the Spanish Public Prosecutor’s Office.” .
However, he stressed that “the attribution of Status of state attorney general under investigation is unprecedented in our country and requires us to carry out an in-depth reflection on the facts that motivate it, the circumstances surrounding it and the consequences that it can generate not only in the future actions of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, but in the entire judicial system Spanish .
What the government says
Closed defense of Moncloa. The news of the accusation arrived in the middle of a government control session, which further confused the plenary session, marked by corruption and the “and you too” that socialists and popular people are launching.
A few minutes later, the Minister of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Cortes, Félix Bolaños, appeared to demonstrate the government’s “total support” for the Attorney General. Bolaños said he was convinced that this case “will come to nothing,” although he also wanted to express “total respect for the judicial resolution.”
Second Vice President Yolanda Díaz also spoke, expressing support and “institutional respect” for the work of the Attorney General.
What the opposition says
Let him resign. The leader of the PP, Alberto Núñéz Feijóo, demanded that President Sánchez and the Attorney General “leave now” because “they have corrupted everything.”
“They can’t stop lying and they can’t stop smearing every institution,” the popular leader said. The secretary general of the PP, Cuca Gamarra, also formally requested the resignation of García Ortiz because “he taints the institutions and compromises the normal functioning of Justice”.
Vox also disapproved of its continuity and considers García Ortiz responsible for “the leak of the data of an anonymous citizen (Isabel Díaz Ayuso’s partner) solely and exclusively for political motivations.” “We have a government that turns Spain into a fourth division nation ruled by looters and extortionists,” said the party’s parliamentary spokesperson, Pepa Millán.
What the tax associations say
Some support him and others demand his resignation. The Association of Prosecutors (AF) —the majority of the race— and the Professional and Independent Association of Prosecutors (APIF) demanded the resignation of the Attorney General, while the Progressive Union of Prosecutors (UPF) —to which he belonged— supported him.
Other controversies
“Not suitable.” In addition to becoming the first attorney general of the state to be indicted by the courts, García Ortiz was questioned upon taking office because he was the heir of Dolores Delgado, his predecessor. In fact, he was classified “unfit” by the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ).
Since her arrival, she has faced criticism for her close relationship with Delgado, also surrounded by controversy for becoming attorney general immediately after leaving the Justice Department.
The Supreme Court also disavowed him when it ruled in November 2023 that he had committed a “misuse of power” by maneuvering to promote Delgado.
And if there is a particularly controversial issue in García Ortiz’s career, it is his appointment policy, frequently brought before the Supreme Court by certain associations.
The High Court revoked some of its most controversial appointments, such as the promotion of Dolores Delgado to the category of chamber prosecutor, the highest of the career, where the magistrates saw a “deviation of power”; or her appointment to the post of prosecutor of the Hall of Democratic Memory, a position to which the attorney general once again proposed her.
And now what?
Gauged. As Attorney General, the case against him, which was first handled by the Superior Court of Justice of Madrid (TSJM), was brought before the Supreme Court, before which García Ortiz is listed, along with others national authorities, such as members of Congress.
According to the government, the matter will soon be resolved and will lead “to nothing”, Minister Bolaños said.
