The magistrate of the National Court who is instructing the 'Plus Ultra case' has given the green light to the Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF) of the National Police to examine various bank accounts in the name of former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, his daughters, Alba and Laura, and his secretary, Gertrudis Alcázar, all of whom are already charged in the proceedings.
In an order to which Europa Press has had access, the judge allows the agents of the Central Brigade for Money Laundering and Anti-Corruption of the UDEF to "expand the information deemed pertinent" about several accounts, including some linked to businessman Julio Martínez Martínez, also under investigation, a partner of Zapatero and owner of Análisis Relevante, one of the companies under scrutiny.
The instructor also specifies that "in the event that the central services of the banking entity do not have access to said information, under no circumstances should contact be made with the relevant bank branch."
These investigations are part of the 'Plus Ultra case', in which possible irregularities in the rescue of 53 million euros granted by the Government to the airline Plus Ultra during the pandemic are analyzed. The judge places Zapatero at the head of an alleged network of influence peddling that would have obtained economic benefits in exchange for supposedly influencing said public aid, which is why he agreed to his indictment.
ZAPATERO, "MAIN BENEFICIARY"
According to the order, the magistrate appreciates a "set of indications" that "reveals a hierarchical structure, with José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero as the main beneficiary, Julio Martínez Martínez as manager and channeler, and a corporate framework designed to conceal the origin and destination of funds, justify payments through fictitious advisory contracts, and dilute traceability through internal movements lacking economic logic."
In that alleged network, "the clients --Plus Ultra, Inteligencia Prospectiva, Softgestor-- act as sources of undercover financing, while companies like Caletón Consultores, Summer Wind, Caletón Consultores or Zenzap function as instruments to introduce funds and redistribute them towards José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, What The Fav (the company of Zapatero's daughters) and companies in the environment of Julio Martínez Martínez."
From the report provided by the UDEF, Judge Calama deduces that Inteligencia Prospectiva "acts as an instrumental company without real activity, with inflows and outflows exceeding 2.6 million despite null or less than 35,000 euros in billing".
This flow would have been channeled "by introducing foreign funds through capital increases and making payments to Análisis Relevante (368,258 euros), What The Fav (561,440 euros) --the company of the former president's daughters-- and Gate Center (266,200 euros), through simulated advisory contracts".
“ARTIFICIAL” CONTRACTS AND INSTRUMENTAL COMPANIES
In parallel, the company Softgestor "orders two transfers to Análisis Relevante for 145,200 euros, justified by an advisory contract considered artificial, and its main clients are U.S. companies linked to Venezuela".
Caletón Consultores, for its part, operates as an "instrumental company receiving and paying invoices from third parties, without real activity, managed 'de facto' by a person other than the formal administrator", according to the order.
The judge details that this company "receives payments from Plus Ultra for 431,492 euros in 2021 and 329,479 euros in 2023, which are subsequently channeled to companies in the environment of Julio Martínez Martínez, such as IOT Domotic Europe and Voli Analítica". In total, Plus Ultra "pays 1,159,558 euros to Caletón Consultores between 2020 and 2025, which redistributes funds to the network".
Regarding other proceedings, the instructor authorizes the investigators to also review other banking products of companies under suspicion, including Inteligencia Prospectiva, and issues the necessary orders to request documentation and movement statements.
The magistrate also orders the opening of a separate piece where the banking information sent by the entities will be fully incorporated, "with said documentation deposited in that restricted area in order to proceed, within that same framework, to the purification and elimination of irrelevant data for the case or likely to affect the privacy of the individuals involved".
"Once this purification is carried out according to the established criteria, only the reports containing the analysis of the received information will be incorporated into the main proceedings, as well as the annexes that include the data to which these reports make express reference, all of which will be accessible to the parties involved," adds Calama.
"RELEVANT ROLE" OF ZAPATERO'S SECRETARY
In relation to Zapatero's secretary, the UDEF maintains that "she would have a relevant role" in the alleged operation, "her intervention in the management of communications, the exchange of documentation, the control of the agenda, all of which is related to the aforementioned exercise of influences of the organization and with sufficient knowledge of their development being confirmed".
The agents emphasize that, "to date there has been no evidence" that the secretary has received funds "directly or indirectly, from the investigated corporate network".
"However, given her relevant role in the organization, it is deemed appropriate to carry out basic inquiries regarding her assets," the report specifies.
In that line, the UDEF has verified that she acquired a property in the Madrid municipality of Velilla de San Antonio, an operation carried out "without a mortgage, through periodic payments by transfer or direct debit, in a time period between March 2021 and June 2023, until completing the payment of 132,055 euros".
"No other operations have been observed that in any way compensate for this real estate transaction or that provide cash income, such as inheritances or recent sales of other properties, that justify the economic capacity displayed," highlights the police unit.
Finally, the UDEF points out that it has detected that the company ASP Rentas "is the company in the environment of Julio Martínez Martínez" that concentrates the largest volume of movements in its accounts.
According to the data collected, it shows inflows of 1,984,521.15 euros and outflows of 1,996,984.41 euros between 2020 and 2025, figures that "contrast with the declared income (89,540 euros)".
After reviewing the operations of ASP Rentas, the UDEF concludes that there are "solid indications of its use as an instrumental company, considering that it is necessary to analyze the destination and traceability of the funds".