Spain's Supreme Court Sentences Former Transport Minister José Luis Ábalos to 24 Years

Spain’s Supreme Court handed down harsh prison terms in a major corruption case. Former transport minister José Luis Ábalos was sentenced to 24 years, his adviser Koldo García Izaguirre to 19 years, and businessman Víctor de Aldama to four and a half years (suspended) for creating a criminal organization that abused governmental power.

The court found the trio coordinated the procurement of 13 million face masks during the COVID‑19 pandemic, funneling contracts to companies linked to Aldama and receiving illicit commissions. Aldama’s firms received €6.6 million in commissions, of which €2 million and €500,000 were paid to Ábalos and García respectively. Regular monthly transfers of €10,000 and rent payments for Ábalos’s alleged lover’s apartment were also documented. The judgment concluded that the scheme amounted to mutual enrichment using Ábalos’s ministerial influence.

Evidence included emails, WhatsApp messages, an Excel sheet, and witness testimony. The verdict marks the severest sentence ever imposed on a sitting Spanish minister, underscoring the judiciary’s stance against high‑level corruption.