MJ Gruas shareholders testify to bribery in Carreteres case

During the fourth session of the trial regarding the ‘Carreteres case’ at the Audiència de Lleida, shareholders of the construction firm MJ Gruas testified that company executives paid bribes to Jordi Benet. Benet served as the head of the Generalitat’s road department in Lleida for over 20 years.

Witnesses, who hold a 40% stake in the company and are acting as private prosecutors, testified that payments were made in cash envelopes to ensure the company received favorable public works contracts. They also alleged that the firm engaged in inflated invoicing, claiming that projects costing €700,000 were sometimes billed at €1 million.

The shareholders stated they initiated a creditors' process to protect the company after discovering irregularities, including the existence of a ‘parallel accounting’ system. While the prosecution and shareholders allege these corrupt practices, some company employees and the accounting manager have denied the existence of a second set of books or any detected irregularities.