Spanish Police Confirm Only One of Begoña Gómez's 36 Foreign Flights Linked to Investigation

The Central Operational Unit (UCO) of Spain's Civil Guard has provided investigating judge Juan Carlos Peinado with a report that significantly weakens the basis of his investigation against Begoña Gómez, the wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. According to information from the report, which reached several Spanish editorial offices, only one of Gómez's 36 foreign flights over the last five years may be linked to the subject of the investigation. This concerns a trip to the Dominican Republic in 2022, which Gómez took with Air Europa to attend a business congress. An assistant, who is one of the persons under investigation in the economic corruption case, also participated in the same event. The remaining 35 flights, including 17 foreign trips recorded by the Ministry of the Interior, were not related to suspects in the investigation. The case against Begoña Gómez, accused of paid patronage and economic corruption, was initiated in the spring of 2024 based on a report from the far-right organization Manos Limpias, which cited press reports. The investigation has had a strong political undertone from the start, being part of a broader struggle between the Spanish right and the left-wing government of Prime Minister Sánchez.The UCO report deals a serious blow to Judge Peinado's investigative strategy, which attempted to show that Gómez regularly traveled in the company of persons allegedly involved in abuses. Meanwhile, the police have confirmed only one such case. In response to these reports, the newspaper EL PAÍS directly stated that the judge's investigation "is leaking" ("hace agua"), which in Spanish means it is falling apart or lacks solid foundations. Other media, such as eldiario.es, emphasize that after intensive searches, the police "only located" one trip related to the case. Another setback for Judge Peinado is the firm opposition of Amazon corporation to his demands. The company, in a letter to the court, reminded the judge of the applicable "legal and diplomatic channels" ("cauces legales y diplomáticos") for requests for information. Amazon indicated that such requests must be directed through official, statutory channels, and not directly to an international entity. This episode is seen as further evidence of procedural irregularities in the investigation. „Amazon recuerda al juez Peinado los cauces legales y diplomáticos para solicitar información.” (Amazon reminds Judge Peinado of the legal and diplomatic channels for requesting information.) — Amazon The case of Begoña Gómez remains one of the most contentious points in Spanish politics. The ruling Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) and its allies have for months accused Judge Peinado and the prosecution of conducting a "political witch hunt" aimed at discrediting Prime Minister Sánchez by attacking his family. On the other hand, the right-wing opposition, including the People's Party (PP) and the Vox party, present the investigation as proof of nepotism and corruption at the highest levels of power. The latest police report, indicating a lack of evidence supporting the broad spectrum of allegations concerning travel, could be used by the government as an argument for dismissing the case or at least significantly reducing its scope. Meanwhile, Judge Peinado clearly is not giving up and is expanding the scope of the investigation, which is meeting with criticism even from part of the legal community, which points to the risk of abuse of judicial power for political purposes.