MEP Luis Pérez Fernández Alvise Admits Receiving €100,000 in Cash Amid Legal Scrutiny

Luis Pérez Fernández Alvise, a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), has confessed to receiving €100,000 in cash from a businessman during a testimony before a judge. Alvise received this amount, purportedly for a lecture on financial freedom, but he denied any implications of illegal financing related to his recent European election campaign. During a nearly hour-long appearance at the Supreme Court, Alvise answered questions posed by investigating judge Julián Sánchez Melgar and his defense counsel. At the heart of the investigation is the claim that Alvise received €100,000 from two employees of CrytoSpain at their Madrid offices, delivered in a black briefcase containing €50 and €100 bills in ten bundles of €10,000 each. Alvise stated that he took the cash home, where he used approximately half for personal and professional expenses but did not disclose specific details on how the other half remains at his disposal. He firmly asserted that there was no illegal financing involved since he claims none of this money contributed to his electoral campaign expenses, which totaled just over €30,000. Consequently, he noted that the €100,000 does not appear in the financial accounts of his party, Se Acabó la Fiesta SALF, which has only recently transitioned from being a political group to a registered party. The Supreme Court has initiated a criminal case against Alvise following indications of potential offenses, including illegal financing of political parties, fraud, embezzlement, money laundering, and document falsification. The National Audience has suggested that Alvise's conduct could be classified as illegal financing of parties, as stated under Article 149 of the Organic Law of the General Electoral Regime. This article pertains to the violation of accounting duties and regulations governing political income. The businessman, Álvaro Romillo, who is also embroiled in the investigation for allegedly operating a pyramid scheme through the investment platform Madeira Invest, will likewise testify before the court. Romillo claims to have disclosed the €100,000 payment intended for Alvise’s training on May 27, 2024, prior to the European elections. In a report by National Audience judge José Luis Calama, it has been suggested that Romillo’s actions could be perceived as an active donation or illegal contribution. This marks Alvise’s third appearance before the Supreme Court, where he faces two additional ongoing legal cases; one concerning alleged forgery and insults related to disseminating false PCR test information regarding former minister and Catalan Generalitat president Salvador Illa in 2021, and another implicating messages directed against the Valencia hate crimes prosecutor, Susana Gisbert, through the Telegram messaging platform. Related Sources: • Source 1 • Source 2