Eduardo Zaplana's Sentence Reduced Amidst Ongoing Corruption Scandal
The Prosecutor's Office in Valencia has decided to reduce the sentence it sought for Eduardo Zaplana, the former president of the Generalitat and a former minister, from 19 to 17 years. This reduction follows the withdrawal of one of his crimes related to public document falsification. Despite this leniency, charges including criminal organization, money laundering, bribery, falsification of commercial documents, and prevarication remain intact. Additionally, the request for a 40 million euro fine still stands. The announcement was made by prosecutor Pablo Ponce at the start of the hearing on Tuesday, where he presented the final conclusions in the high-profile Erial case.
Confessions Lead to Reduced Sentences
Other key figures in the case, like Juan Francisco García and Joaquín Barceló, have seen their charges reduced due to their confessions. García, initially facing a 14-year sentence, now has a recommended 5-month term for money laundering, 18 months for bribery, and 1 year for falsifying documents, alongside a 1.32 million euro fine. Barceló, Zaplana's alleged frontman, admitted to his involvement and now faces 1 year and 3 months for money laundering, 5 months for criminal group participation, and a 5 million euro fine.
Industrialists José and Vicente Cotino also confessed to their roles, allowing them to avoid prison. José faces a 2-year sentence for bribery, while Vicente faces 2 years for bribery, 1 year for falsification, and 5 months for money laundering, with fines of 320,000 euros and 4.32 million euros respectively. Public accusations against some defendants, such as former PP deputy Elvira Suanzes, have been dropped due to insufficient evidence.
- In a parallel development, the Valencian economy is showing signs of distress. The metallurgical sector, critical to the region's industrial backbone, reported a catastrophic 19.5% year-on-year drop in activity in April. This decline mirrors the worst months of the pandemic and signifies ongoing struggles to stabilize amidst recession fears.
- According to the Association of Metallurgical Industrialists (ADIMRA), from January to April, the industry contracted by 8.6%. Utilization of installed capacity also plummeted to 42.5%, 13.4 percentage points lower than the previous year, while employment levels fell by 0.5% from March.
- Moreover, the sector's contraction is uneven, with agricultural machinery seeing a 15% decline while the construction-linked and automotive segments face sharper declines. Although some provinces like Córdoba and Entre Ríos are faring relatively better, broader indicators point to a struggling industrial landscape across the region.
