The Court of First Instance and Instruction number 4 of Majadahonda will investigate the president of the RFEF, Luis Rubiales, and the Barça footballer and president of Kosmos, Gerard Piqué, for the alleged crimes of unfair administration and corruption in businessaccording to an order dictated this Monday to which El Periódico de España, a newspaper of the same group, Prensa Ibérica, as this newspaper, had access.
The judge thus admits for processing the complaint filed by the Transparency and Democracy in Sports Association, led by the president of CENAFE, Miguel Angel Galanunderstanding that the facts described in his complaint “have the character of an alleged crime of unfair administration and corruption in business.”
In said complaint, filed on May 30, Galán denounced some of the practices revealed in the private audios and documents of Rubiales, published by ‘El Confidencial’, and allegedly illegally stolen of the mobile phone of the president of the RFEF.
The alleged crimes
Among the alleged criminal acts denounced by the president of CENAFE are the agreement between Saudi Arabia and Kosmos by which Piqué’s company pocketed 24 million euros in commission for taking the Spanish Super Cup to the Saudi kingdom; spying on the president of AFEDavid Aganzo; housing assistance that RFEF paid to Rubiales; Y your trip to the USA along with two other federal workers.
Rubiales and Piqué now have three days to file a reform and subsidiary appeal against the order and five days to file a direct appeal. The judge also requires a bail of 10,000 euros to Galán to appear as a private prosecution in the process.
The decision will force the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office to withdraw, which despite must rule on the jurisdiction of this court, as requested by Judge Delia Rodrigo Díaz herself in her car.
This is because article 773.2 of the Criminal Procedure Law states that the prosecutor “will cease his proceedings as soon as he becomes aware of the existence of a judicial proceeding on the same facts.” In this way, the Public Ministry will have to send Judge Rodrigo everything that she has investigated so far and she will lose control of the time on the case and the exclusive rights to the request for proceedings to be carried out.
He will study if he imposes the bail
Likewise, the judge asks Anti-Corruption to report on the application of the precautionary measure requested by the plaintiff against Rubiales and Piqué, which, according to what this newspaper reported at the time, implies the imposition of a bond “to ensure pecuniary responsibilities” in the that they could incur and, where appropriate “the seizure of assets” for the value of what was allegedly stolen, which according to this part amounts to 24,041,764 euros.
These amounts, according to Galán, correspond to the flow with which the RFEF has been deprived of assets. “Of which 24,000,000 euros must be jointly and severally liable for both defendants regarding their involvement in the two crimes of corruption in business,” the lawsuit added, and with regard to the three crimes of unfair administration, another second bail only for Rubiales for another 41,764 euros.
more fronts
Apart from this lawsuit, Rubiales still has several open fronts: a complaint to the Civil Guard (the AFE), another complaint still pending admission in the Court of Instruction number 44 of Madrid (from Clean Hands) and a complaint for harassment and coercion (from his uncle and former chief of staff Juan), in addition to two requests at the CSD table (from AFE and the International Doge of Madrid) to be investigated by the Administrative Court of Sport.
Rubiales, for his part, announced a complaint against his uncle Juan and against another RFEF worker for illegally obtain information and reveal secrets. Two other federal employees, Javier Gómez Matallanas and Miguel García Caba, have been denounced by the president of LaLigaJavier Tebasfor libel and slander.
“The dark side”
This same Tuesday, in the extraordinary assembly held by the RFEF for the approval of its 2021 accounts, he denounced that “it is proven that there are people who want to end the president of the RFEF”, accusing his detractors of getting him “someone who was close to me betrayed me”in implicit reference to his uncle Juan of whom he has said he feels “pity”.
Rubiales has directly mentioned his archenemy Javier Tebas, of whom he has highlighted that “he says that we have to win the battle and kill Rubiales”. “The dark side of football is not this where I find myself. People are fed up with these attacks and disrespect. They will not find any illegality in my way of acting. It will continue to damage my image, I know what they want, but I am still just as calm”, the president of the RFEF closed.
