Zapatero faces expanded fiscal and criminal probes over Plus Ultra case

Spain's former prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is at the centre of a widening investigation that combines criminal and tax probes. Prosecutors are demanding that businessman Julio Martínez, alleged front man for Zapatero, provide substantial material before he testifies on 21 July before the Audiencia Nacional. The case focuses on the 2021 state rescue of airline Plus Ultra, which involved a €53 million public aid package.

The Treasury's tax authority has opened inspections covering Zapatero, his wife Sonsoles Espinosa, his daughters, and several related companies for a range of taxes – personal income, VAT, wealth and the solidarity tax on large fortunes – spanning fiscal years 2021‑2025. A separate line of inquiry concerns a cache of jewellery valued at about €1.3 million found in Zapatero’s office, prompting the State’s legal service to formally intervene in the investigation. Officials say the probes seek evidence of money‑laundering, influence‑peddling, and other alleged crimes linked to the Plus Ultra operation.