BARCELONA, Spain (AP) 鈥� A judge on Saturday ordered the wife of Spanish Prime Minister to face trial on charges of influence peddling and corruption, and to surrender her passport.
Investigative judge Juan Carlos Peinado issued the ruling, arguing that Bego帽a G贸mez represented a flight risk. In addition to surrendering her passport, she must also appear before a court every two weeks. A trial date hasn’t been set.
The decision touched off a heated political confrontation, with calls from the opposition for Sanchez’s Socialist government to resign.
G贸mez is accused of using her position to influence government contracts given to a group of technology companies. The judge also accused her of the misuse of public funds in the hiring of a consultant, and the inappropriate use of software while she was a professor at a public university.
G贸mez has denied any wrongdoing. S谩nchez has called the case against her part of a smear campaign by conservative political opponents to topple his left-wing government, which has been in power since 2018.
Peinado said that a businessman who allegedly benefited from the government contracts and the consultant that worked for G贸mez will also stand trial.
厂谩苍肠丑别锄, , is facing legal trouble on multiple fronts before a general election due by next year.
Earlier this week, a former Socialist prime minister, Jos茅 Luis Rodr铆guez Zapatero, appeared before a different judge in connection with his alleged role in a government airline bailout and to explain the discovery of during a police raid on his office. He denies wrongdoing.
Government officials sharply criticized Saturday’s decision as politically motivated, while the Socialist Party called it 鈥渁n absolute scandal for democracy.鈥�
鈥淏ego帽a G贸mez is innocent,鈥� the party said. 鈥淔or two years now, she has been the target of a political and judicial witch hunt. Today鈥檚 development is just the latest escalation.鈥�
But Spain鈥檚 conservative opposition went on the attack, urging the government to call an early election.
鈥淟awmakers and the architects of our constitution could never have imagined that the threats to our democracy could originate from the Spanish government itself,鈥� said Miguel Tellado, secretary-general of the main opposition People鈥檚 Party.
鈥淣ow we see how the government attacks judges, prosecutors and the media while attempting to silence opposition parties,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his is unthinkable in any modern democracy.鈥�
The two-year investigation into G贸mez was launched following accusations by the pressure group Manos Limpias, or Clean Hands, which has pursued multiple legal cases, many linked to conservative causes.
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Derek Gatopoulos contributed to this report from Athens, Greece.
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