Agents of the National Police Corps (CNP) investigate the origin of an email in which “a payment” was claimed and that it was sent to the Electoral Board responsible for the elections in the Madrid Tennis Federationheld on April 24, 2021. As confirmed to The Newspaper of Spain legal sources, the police have recently contacted a member of the body responsible for the elections.
It so happens that the head of the 45th Investigating Court of Madrid, Luisa María Prieto, opened a case in this regard on July 23, 2021 and just seven days later, on July 30 of the same year, she decreed her provisional dismissal. : a complaint from several individuals was then investigated in which they warned that the Electoral Board of the Madrid Tennis Federation had received an email, allegedly linked to the then director General of Infrastructures and Sport of the Community of Madrid, in which a “illicit” fertilizeraccording to the Prosecutor’s Office, during the federal elections of April 2021.
Despite the file of the case, the magistrate has reiterated her order to the Provincial Brigade of Technological Crimes of the National Police Corps (CNP) to try to identify the IP and user data of the ’email’ address “presidente@aepl .cba.pl” from which the potentially criminal messages would have been sent. In case the police get new evidence of criminal relevance, the instructor would reopen the procedurepoint out the legal sources consulted.
The charge was denied
The Court initiated the case for an alleged crime of identity theft, since the then general director of Infrastructures and Sports of the Community of Madrid denied having sent the emails under suspicion. Therefore, the magistrate issued an order in which she explained that she intended to determine if the name of a position and public official associated with an email had been used, in which an irregular payment of money was requested. And all within a process of possible change of the management members of the Federation.
The prosecutor José L. García Navas indicated in a letter dated July 6, 2021, addressed to the judge, that he was aware that the Electoral Board of the Tennis Federation had requested explanations from the general director of Infrastructures and Sports of the Community of Madrid in relation to the alleged claim for money. And this ex-charge of the Madrid regional government replied that had nothing to do with this email account, that it was not the official one, that he did not know anything about that payment and that he had even given instructions to the public company Madrid Digital to proceed with the necessary and timely procedures to solve the matter.
After the refusal of that regional ex-charge, the Prosecutor’s Office initially defended the dismissal of the investigation, considering that despite having usurped the identity of the Madrid politician, there would have been no fraud or computer damage. But the prosecutor’s opinion changed when he received an extension of the complaint, which included several legal reports from the Community of Madrid, whose content made it possible for a Management Board not to be appointed for the elections and for the Board of Directors to continue in office.
“Prevarication and Bribery”
The extension of the complaint explains that in the electoral process there was a substantial change on the part of the Madrid Administration, which would have occurred after the claim for money. “According to the complainants, This change in legal criteria has always favored the interests of the outgoing Board of Directors. In his opinion, these facts may constitute crimes of prevarication and bribery,” wrote the representative of the Public Ministry.
José L. García Navas recounted his suspicions about the actions of the ex-charge from Madrid: “The truth is that, A few days before the change of interpretation alleged by the complainants occurs, the aforementioned email is received in the name of the general manager demanding a payment that we do not know what it may correspond to or who has really requested it”. The prosecutor therefore considers that it should be investigated if it is a simple fraud or, on the contrary, the former politician of the Community of Madrid really asked for a bribe.
The Newspaper of Spain has contacted the ex-charge of Sports of the Madrid Community, whose identity is not provided in this information as he is not charged or formally investigated, since the case is provisionally dismissed. He recalls that the Tennis Federation elections became a “complicated process, with many challenges.” From the Madrid Administration, as he explains, it was a matter of “calling for calm, without taking sides, maintaining the maximum neutrality”. It defends that all the decisions were adopted “through the Sports Legal Commission, which is a collegiate body of the Community of Madrid“.
did not claim money
The former Director of Sports, who says that he did not claim money “from anyone”, maintains that He warned that they were receiving messages “from a strange account”, so he asked Madrid Digital to detect the email: “In any case, any statement or resolution had the endorsement of the Sports Legal Commission, which was the one that had the ability to resolve any conflict,” he defends.
“I warned the Electoral Board that there was an email, in which my name was supplanted. We did not give it any kind of credibility,” continues the ex-charge from Madrid, who does not remember the specific content of the messages: “I have 34 years of professional practice complying at all times with current regulations. I am very calm, this case already has two dismissals. Though if you go ahead I’ll have no problem explaining everything. I have not the slightest doubt that my performance is what a CEO should have,” he concludes.
The Newspaper of Spain has sent several questions about the events to the Madrid Tennis Federation that have not been answered.