Gürtel case

The Gürtel case is an ongoing political corruption scandal in Spain, which implicates officers of the People's Party (PP), Spain's major right-wing party, some of which have been forced to resign or have been suspended. Gürtel is one of the largest corruption scandals in recent Spanish history, and there are related scandals, such as the Barcenas case, which have received media attention in their own right. The case came to public attention in early 2009, but for the most part the suspects were not put on trial until October 2016.

The investigative operation was given the name Gürtel in a cryptic reference to one of the principal suspects, Francisco Correa () (Correa means belt in Spanish, Gürtel in German). Correa is a businessman who cultivated links with PP officers. The Spanish police began to investigate his activities in 2007 after information was obtained from a whistle-blower, Ana Garrido Ramos, regarding alleged corruption in the Madrid area.

The accusations include bribery, money laundering and tax evasion, and implicate a circle of businessmen led by Correa and politicians from the People's Party. The alleged illicit activities relate to party funding and the awarding of contracts by local/regional governments in Valencia, the Community of Madrid and elsewhere.

Early estimates of the money loss to public finances amounted to at least €120,000,000., while some of the alleged bribes paid in return were not particularly large (for example, items of luxury clothing).

A judicial investigation was started by Baltasar Garzón, the examining magistrate of the Juzgado Central de Instrucción No. 5, the court which investigates the most important criminal cases in Spain, including terrorism, organised crime, and money laundering. Garzón had five suspects, including Correa, detained in February 2009.

...
Wikipedia