Julián Muñoz and Del Nido get seven and a half years in prison

José María del Nido

MARBELLA (Agencies) The former mayor of Marbella, Julián Muñoz, was sentenced yesterday to seven and a half years in jail for his part in the Minutas case, an spin-off of the Malaya case, Spain's largest. The judge also sentenced the President of Sevilla Football Club, José María del Nido, to the same time in jail - plus payment of €3,058,505 and €2.7 million respectively, and are barred from public office for 15 years. The alleged head of the Malaya case, also involved in this one, Juan Antonio Roca, got 4 years in jail. The case arises from a systematic 'decapitalization' of the Marbella treasury, called Minutas because this is another word for bills, as presented by lawyers (Del Nido is one), but which in this case were presented between 1999 and 2003, but no legal work done for them. The case can be appealed to the Supreme Court but there is no news that they will be.

Ronda exMayor and three Councillors charged in corruption cases

Antonio María Marín Lara (l.), arrested
(Photo: El País / Julián Rojas)

RONDA (Agencies) It took the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's officials and a host of National Policemen nine hours to search the Town Hall and Town Planning offices of Ronda Council in an operation that ended with the arrest of seven people and confiscation of what one paper calls 'abundant documentation'. Chief among the detainees is Antonio María Marín Lara, former Mayor of Ronda and present PSOE Councillor. Another three are are implicated in an alleged network of corruption that operated among the previous corporation of the Málaga town. Among the charges against them are those of perversion of the course of justice, bribery, peddling of political influence, embezzlement, forging documents and money laundering. The PSOE was in power from September 2004 until the last local elections of May 22. Among those detained are also a local lawyer and two directors of the Eroski supermarket chain. The operation, dubbed Acinipo after an archaeological site in the area,>>>

Marbella corruption case gets under way again

Juan Antonio Roca

MARBELLA (Agencies) In the renewal of the Malaya corruption case in Marbella, its principal character, Juan Antonio Roca, said yesterday that he bought prize-winning lottery tickets to 'avoid paying taxes on the petty cash money' and has denied that his wife, María Rosa Jimeno, and daughter, María Roca -both of them under charges of money laundering in the case- had any knowledge of the operations he carried out. Roca said that some of the money was his and another part of it his wife's, but he had access to it. "I had the money and I invested it like that," said the alleged head of the corruption network on Marbella Council. The trial started a new 'block' on Monday, this one regarding money laundering and related to artworks and prize-winning lottery tickets. Papers filed in the case say that Roca bought lottery tickets that had won prizes but paid well over the prize money involved. Roca, or one of his many 'shell' companies or relatives, owns property in Jimena. One of the estates has two -yes, two- helipads, a bullring and other features that have been deteriorating severely since the case was uncovered in November 2005.