Madrid court suspends prison for 'Little Nicolás' over 12-year-old police database crimes
The Madrid Provincial Court has suspended the two-year prison sentence of Francisco Nicolás Gómez Iglesias, known as 'El Pequeño Nicolás', for accessing police databases, citing the nearly 12 years since the crimes and his clean record since.
The decision
The Audiencia Provincial de Madrid agreed on 7 July 2026 to suspend the prison entry of Francisco Nicolás Gómez Iglesias, widely known as 'El Pequeño Nicolás'. He had been sentenced to a total of two years, one month and 15 days for discovery and revelation of secrets and active bribery. The suspension runs for four years and is conditional on him committing no further offences and paying a €1,800 fine.
Conceder el beneficio de la suspensión de condena de las penas privativas de libertad impuestas.
The prosecution supported the suspension. The court warned that any breach of the conditions would lead to the immediate enforcement of the prison term.
Background
Gómez Iglesias gained notoriety for posing as a high-ranking official and accessing restricted police databases. The crimes date back to September and October 2014. He was originally sentenced to four years and three months, but the Supreme Court reduced the penalty in March 2026 to two years, one month and 15 days after accepting a plea of undue delays. The individual sentences were seven months and 15 days for discovery and revelation of secrets and one year and six months for active bribery.
Court's reasoning
The judges applied an exceptional provision under article 80 of the Penal Code because the combined sentence exceeded the ordinary two-year threshold, but each individual penalty fell below it. They emphasised the nearly 12 years that had passed since the offences and the absence of any new criminal conduct.
Dado el tiempo transcurrido desde la comisión de los delitos objeto de la presente causa —cercano a los 12 años— sin que conste haber acometido nuevas conductas delictivas, se considera que la ejecución de las penas privativas de libertad no resulta necesaria para evitar la comisión de nuevos delitos.
The court added that suspending the sentence would aid resocialisation, which prison could undermine, and that a favourable prognosis for future behaviour existed.
Conditions
The suspension is tied to two requirements: Gómez Iglesias must not reoffend during the four-year period, and he must pay a €1,800 fine. The original sentence already included a six-month fine at €10 per day, which he has satisfied. The court noted two prior convictions for document falsification from 2012 and 2014, but those prison terms were also suspended at the time.
