Spanish Court Confirms Convictions in Campus de la Justicia Case, Reduces Civil Liability
The Appeals Chamber of the National Court has upheld the seven-year prison sentence for Alfredo Prada, the former vice president and minister of Justice of the Community of Madrid. This decision comes as a result of irregularities related to the construction of the Campus de la Justicia, which occurred between 2005 and 2011 under the administration of Esperanza Aguirre. In a detailed 117-page ruling authored by Judge Eloy Velasco, the Chamber has confirmed the sentence originally handed down to Prada in September by the First Criminal Section, while reducing his civil liability from 40 million to 10 million euros, to be paid jointly and severally to the Community of Madrid by Prada and other convicted individuals. This adjustment was made because the judges determined that not all of the 25 contracts under scrutiny could be deemed irregular, as approximately half had contributed some utility and could potentially continue to benefit the project's aims.
In addition to Prada, the ruling also confirmed a three-and-a-half-year prison sentence for Alicio de las Heras, the financial director of the Campus de la Justicia, for continued crime of prevarication and aggravated embezzlement. Conversely, the Chamber acquitted technical director Isabelino Baños and security director Andrés Gómez Gordo, a former advisor to Castilla-La Mancha's former president and general secretary of the PP, María Dolores de Cospedal. However, Gómez Gordo is scheduled to appear again in court in 2026 over the Kitchen case, along with former Interior Minister Jorge Fernández Díaz, among others. Despite being acquitted of the direct charges, these individuals remain under a disqualification sentence for administrative prevarication, which is not punishable by imprisonment. Félix José García de Castro, the legal advisor for the project, saw his initial three-and-a-half-year sentence reduced to one-and-a-half years for similar charges, while the acquittal of Mariano José Sanz Piñars was confirmed.
The Appeals Chamber's analysis focused on the 25 contracts deemed constitutive of crimes of prevarication and embezzlement of public funds, confirming that all contracts were awarded arbitrarily. The judges found that embezzlement had occurred in thirteen contracts, where funds deviated from the social purpose of the project and were instead used for self-promotional activities, such as publicity and communication. These contracts included several advertising campaigns costing over 5 million euros, the rental of advertising space on prominent building facades in Madrid, and the production of digital content—all contributing to expenditures totaling nearly 10 million euros, a figure which represented about 25% of the project's overall costs.
While the Court acknowledged that some expenditure on publicity and communication could be justified in a media-driven society, it deemed the allocation of such a large sum arbitrary, benefiting those awarded the contracts rather than serving the public interest. The ruling indicates that resources that could have been redirected towards further planning and execution of the project's primary objectives were instead funneled into self-promotion efforts.
Crucially, the judges confirmed that a systematic approach to contract selection and awarding was circumvented to avoid transparency and competitive bidding. This included splitting payments and coordinating budgets among businesses to eliminate competition, resulting in considerable harm to public administration and governance.
Prada's defense challenged the allegations of embezzlement, arguing that neither he nor the contractors personally profited from the funds. In response, the Chamber clarified that as the funds belonged to citizens—who contributed through taxes—they were not at liberty to allocate them capriciously for self-promotional activities. Citing the Supreme Court's doctrine on embezzlement, the judges reiterated that personal enrichment is not a requisite for the crime; rather, it suffices to show that public funds were mishandled to the detriment of public purposes.
Referring to the failed Campus de la Justicia project, former president Esperanza Aguirre defended the initiative, expressing that it was a collective undertaking with widespread initial support and that it has cost 355 million euros thus far. During the trial, she recalled that all parties involved posed for photos as the first stone was laid, reiterating her belief in the project's importance despite its controversial execution.
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