The third day of the trial with a popular jury for the double crime of Manzanares has brought to light this Thursday new recordings and conversations intercepted during the investigation of the disappearances of J.M.I.F. and J.M.G.B., as well as the compromised financial situation of the main accused, J.C.V.
Among the most notable statements is that of an agent from the Central Operational Unit (UCO) responsible for analyzing the phone taps and the recordings obtained in the framework of the investigation into the disappearance of J.M.I.F.
The agents have reported that J.C.V. knew that his mobile phone was tapped and that he took extra precautions when he wanted to address certain matters. What he did not know was that the Civil Guard had also placed a listening device in his vehicle.
According to one of the investigators, some of his calls were even "theatricalized," understanding that the accused was trying to convey a specific version to the agents while, in reality, he was acting differently.
For this reason, the investigators placed special importance on the expressions he used when he thought no one was listening.
One of those recordings was made after G.R.E., accused as an accomplice, warned him that the Civil Guard was asking about a property in Valdepeñas, purchased a few days before the disappearance of J.M.I.F. and which had already attracted the interest of the investigators.
After that call, J.C.V. was recorded reprimanding G.R.E.'s actions with phrases like "you just got the crime on you," "now you've really messed up," or "you're stupid."
"This is already ready for sentencing" and the property in Valdepeñas
Another expression that the Civil Guard considers especially significant occurred after a conversation with J.C.S.L.F., also accused in the case, although not by the Prosecutor's Office, and linked to the formal ownership of that property.
As explained before the jury, J.C.S.L.F. informed J.C.V. that the Civil Guard had summoned him to testify about the ownership.
Upon hanging up the phone and being alone, the main accused uttered the phrase "This is already ready for sentencing," which one of the investigators has described as "transcendental and revealing."
The property ended up becoming a key piece of the investigation. Days later, the Civil Guard found the remains of J.M.I.F. in a well on that property in Valdepeñas, missing since July 2022.
More than 150,000 euros in debts with friends
During the session, new conversations about the economy of J.C.V. also came to light. On the same day of his arrest, a retired officer of the Civil Guard, a friend of the accused, spoke by phone with another mutual acquaintance and claimed that J.C.V. owed him 37,000 euros.
His interlocutor pointed out that he owed him approximately three times that amount, and both referred to a third person to whom he could owe around 100,000 euros.
"He has abused the trust of friends and has deceived us," stated the former high-ranking official during that conversation.
This same officer expressed his perplexity over the arrest of J.C.V. and even suggested that it could be "a case of double personality," before emphasizing that "the UCO does not make mistakes."
The conversations analyzed in the hearing have allowed for a more detailed profiling of the economic situation of the main accused, an aspect that the Prosecutor's Office links to the possible motive for the two murders.
Requests for sentence and continuation of the trial
The Prosecutor's Office demands 46 years in prison for J.C.V., whom they consider directly responsible for the two homicides, and 19 years for G.R.E., whom they charge as an accomplice and to whom they apply the mitigating factor of confession for his subsequent collaboration with the investigators.
The trial will resume this Friday at the Provincial Court of Ciudad Real with new testimonies, including those of relatives of both victims and several agents of the Civil Guard.