Spanish investigators seek freeze on Portuguese accounts in €78M fraud case

The Spanish Civil Guard's Central Operating Unit (UCO) has requested Judge Santiago Pedraz to immediately freeze dozens of bank accounts in Portugal linked to the hydrocarbon fraud investigation. The request targets accounts held by the company Villafuel and its associates, including Claudio Rivas, a partner of commission agent Claudio Víctor de Aldama.

Investigators have updated the estimated amount of diverted funds to at least 78,318,349 euros. The UCO reported that while funds were traced from Spanish accounts to Portuguese entities, there has been a lack of sufficient information regarding certain movements, making it difficult to fully identify the origin and destination of all funds.

This case is connected to previous legal proceedings involving Aldama, which resulted in prison sentences for former minister José Luis Ábalos and his advisor Koldo García.