The judicial investigation into the rescue of 53 million euros granted to Plus Ultra by the Government during the pandemic continues to escalate. In separate writings sent to the judge of the National Court José Luis Calama, both the businessman Julio Martínez Martínez, partner and friend of the former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, and the top executives of the airline have provided a version that places the former socialist leader as a key figure in the efforts to obtain public aid.
The statements come just one day before the investigated parties appear before the investigating magistrate of the so-called Plus Ultra case.
The writings, submitted with the declared aim of cooperating with Justice, contain assertions that directly affect the role played by Zapatero and acknowledge for the first time the payment of a commission equivalent to 1% of the rescue, about 530,000 euros, for the intermediation work.
Zapatero "set the steps to follow"
In his writing, Julio Martínez Martínez claims that it was José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero himself who drove all the operations from the beginning. According to his defense, the relationship with Plus Ultra began in May 2020, when the former president informed him that he would receive a call from the top executives of the airline.
A few days later, the president of the airline, Julio Martínez Sola, and the CEO, Roberto Roselli, contacted him to explain the delicate economic situation the company was going through and the urgent need to find financing.
The businessman’s defense insists that Martínez Martínez did not have the capacity to obtain public or private financing by himself, but acted merely as an intermediary between the client and the true consultant.
This consultant, the writing expressly states, was Zapatero. "It was Zapatero who set the steps to follow", the defense literally asserts.
According to his version, the former president was the one who initially proposed trying to obtain an ICO credit through contacts with Banco Santander. To this end, he would have instructed the executives of Plus Ultra to send a letter to the bank's vice president, Juan Manuel Cendoya, following his instructions. Also, according to the account, the company attempted to obtain financing through La Caixa, although neither of the two avenues prospered.
From the failure of the ICO to the SEPI rescue
After the failure of attempts to obtain bank financing, the creation in July 2020 of the Support Fund for the Solvency of Strategic Companies (FASEE), managed by the State Society of Industrial Participations (SEPI), opened a new possibility for the company.
It was then when, according to the document, all efforts focused on obtaining that public bailout.
On July 30, 2020, Plus Ultra signed a contract with the company Análisis Relevante, owned by Martínez Martínez, which established fees of 5,000 euros per month plus VAT.
However, the defense argues that the reality was different from what was formally reflected in the contract. It claims that those payments actually corresponded to the advice that Zapatero had been providing since May 2020.
The 1% commission for the success of the bailout
In addition to those monthly fees, the document acknowledges another contract signed on January 19, 2021 between Plus Ultra and Idella Consulenza Strategica, one of the companies investigated by the judge.
In that agreement, it was established that the company would charge 1% of the financing obtained as compensation for the success of the operation. The defense expressly admits that the amount finally paid for mediating in obtaining the public aid amounted to approximately that percentage.
It also explains that, due to the enormous media pressure surrounding the bailout, it was decided to defer the payment until 2026 and channel part of the amounts through other companies linked to the businessman.
Zapatero announced that SEPI would grant the aid
One of the most striking aspects of the document is the moment when, according to Martínez Martínez, the former president informed him that the aid was going to be approved.
The defense maintains that it was on February 26, 2021 when Zapatero informed him that SEPI was going to grant the bailout requested by Plus Ultra.
Immediately, it adds, Martínez Martínez conveyed that information to the main shareholders of the company, Camilo Ibrahim and Rodolfo Reyes.
Few days later, on March 2, FASEE approved the operation and the Council of Ministers on March 9, 2021 gave the final green light to the bailout worth 53 million euros.
The executives of Plus Ultra confirm payments of more than half a million euros
In separate but practically identical writings, the president of Plus Ultra, Julio Martínez Sola, and the CEO, Roberto Roselli, also acknowledge that the airline ended up paying significant amounts to the environment of Zapatero.
The two officials state that they were aware that both Martínez Martínez and the former president intended to charge for the actions taken, something they decided to accept given the critical situation the company was facing.
In the very writing, a conversation intercepted by the Police between Roselli and the Venezuelan businessman Rodolfo Reyes is recovered.
In it, the CEO anticipated: "So that's where the kickback will come from." The defenses even use that expression to refer to the intermediaries' claim for payment.
However, they emphasize that they never came to know exactly what specific actions were taken to influence the granting of the bailout by SEPI.
530,000 euros between money and business class flights
The airline's officials detail the distribution of the payments made.
As they explain, the financial commitment reached approximately 530,000 euros, equivalent to 1% of the public bailout. The distribution would have been 249,000 euros for Análisis Relevante, 98,617 euros for Voli Analítica, and 110,799 euros for Domotic Europe.
In addition, they assure that the businessman agreed to replace part of the pending money with 69,000 euros in business class flight tickets, used from 2021 onwards.
The writings also describe how those payments were structured. According to their account, Plus Ultra issued around 40 invoices for amounts ranging between 6,050 and 7,250 euros, under the concept of "Monthly fees. Report preparation".
However, the defenses themselves now maintain that those reports had little real utility for the company and that their function was essentially to cover up the payments. A similar situation occurred with other invoices issued for flight management services Madrid-Caracas or through companies like IOT Domotic and Voli Analítica.
The executives add that they even intended to subsequently carry out a complete regularization of all the amounts paid, although that operation was interrupted by police action.
The first contact: a call from a hidden number
The version offered by the officials of Plus Ultra places the origin of the entire process in April 2020.
According to their explanation, the Venezuelan businessman Rodolfo Reyes suggested they seek political contacts that would facilitate access to public aid. After several efforts, the president of the airline received a call from a hidden number on April 30, 2020.
The person on the other end of the phone was, according to the document, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. For approximately ten minutes, Martínez Sola explained to the former president the serious financial situation of the company and the need to obtain financing through ICO credits.
According to this version, Zapatero responded that he could help and that he would carry out the necessary arrangements, indicating that the operational contact would be Julio Martínez Martínez.
The executives clarify, however, that in that conversation, there was never any talk of money or fees.
A consultancy designed around Zapatero
The document presented by the former president's partner also dedicates a broad section to explaining the operation of Análisis Relevante, the consultancy under investigation.
The company was founded in late 2019, driven by Martínez Martínez, journalist Sergio Sánchez, and Javier de Paz. According to the defense, the idea was to leverage Zapatero's prestige and international relations to offer strategic consulting services.
Although the former president did not formally appear as a shareholder or administrator, the defense argues that he was the one who really directed the company. "He was out of the shareholding and formal bodies, but he was the one who led it and decided all those issues of strategy and client acquisition."
It also claims that it was Zapatero who secured the four clients with whom the consultancy worked until 2025, including Plus Ultra, as well as companies like Softgestor, Alaska Ilimitada (later Inteligencia Prospectiva), and Grupo Aldesa.
Zapatero's daughters and the reports
The defense also explains that journalist Sergio Sánchez was responsible for shaping the reports prepared by the former president.
Subsequently, those documents were formatted by What The Fav, the company of Zapatero's daughters, also investigated in the case, through a monthly fee of 3,000 euros that, according to the document, was maintained until 2025.
The functions attributed to the former president consisted of preparing strategic reports, providing international advice, and offering conferences for the consultancy's clients.
The 286,000 euros found in his home
The writing also attempts to dissociate from the case the money located by the Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF) during the search of Martínez Martínez's home.
The Police found 286,000 euros in cash, hidden in sports bags, furniture, and toiletry bags. The defense argues that this money came exclusively from the sale of real estate assets and that it has no relation to the investigations regarding Plus Ultra.
The defense also reconstructs the origin of the relationship between Martínez Martínez and Zapatero. As explained, they met in 2011 through Javier de Paz, in connection with the purchase and sale of a house owned by the Zapatero couple in Vera (Almería).
Subsequently, they shared a passion for running, which led to a personal relationship that, according to the writing, was maintained for years through frequent sports meetings until the end of 2025.
Plus Ultra acknowledges mistakes, but denies being a shell company
Despite all the admissions made, the airline's executives reject that Plus Ultra was an instrumental company.
In their writings, they argue that the company made mistakes, but they defend that it carried out a real economic activity, with employees, tax payments, and effective provision of services.
They also attribute all the investigated operations to the critical situation caused by the pandemic and the urgent need to obtain liquidity to ensure the company's survival.
Meanwhile, the judge of the National Court continues to investigate whether the actions taken to achieve the rescue of 53 million could constitute crimes related to influence peddling, money laundering, and other irregularities, in a case that, after the writings presented this Monday, incorporates for the first time statements from the investigated individuals themselves that place former president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero as the protagonist of the strategy followed to obtain public aid and the remuneration system established after its granting.