Los prosecutors of the separatist coup have transferred to the attorney general of the State, Álvaro García Ortiz, that They are against applying the amnesty law to the former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont in the crime of embezzlement because they understand that it was for profit and that it affected the financial interests of the European Union (EU), although they consider that it can be applied to the crimes of disobedience and public disorder.
“We are facing acts of embezzlement of public funds to which the amnesty law does not apply“Prosecutors maintain in a document.
As they explain, “in accordance with community law, the misappropriation of public funds affects the financial interests of the European Union«, so they consider that it would be excluded from the amnesty because that is what the law approved this Thursday in Congress establishes.
The prosecutors also emphasize that it is “clear” that there was a profit motive and a “patrimonial benefit» in the case of the former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, the former vice president of the Generalitat Oriol Junquerasof the escaped former councilors Toni Comín and Lluís Puigand the convicted former councilors Raül Romeva, Jordi Turull and Dolors Bassa.
In this sense, they insist that they received said “benefit” as soon as they dedicated public funds “to unconstitutional purposes of extraordinary cost that benefited them to achieve their purposes.
Thus, prosecutors Javier Zaragoza, Consuelo Madrigal, Fidel Cadena and Jaime Moreno recall that in the amnesty law itself “Acts constituting the crime of embezzlement are excluded” “as long as there has been a purpose of enrichment.”
And they emphasize that in this case Puigdemont, Junqueras, Comín, Puig, Romeva, Turull and Bassa —”for profit”— They “appropriated public funds, with their own financial benefit and without any restitution of the assets separated forever from their legitimate and constitutional function.”«.
“With the money stolen from public coffers, public services and contracts were paid for that provided coverage, support and solvency for a political project exclusive to the benefiting authors,” they add.
On this point, it is worth remembering that the Supreme Court – when reviewing the case of the separatist coup after the reform of the Penal Code by which embezzlement was modified – already reviewed the concept of enrichment and profit motive and insisted that “it can never be understood” that the actions of the condemned were “absent” of said spirit.
Against lifting arrest warrants and disqualifications
On the sidelines, the four prosecutors of the separatist coup understand that The amnesty law would not affect the disqualifications that Junqueras, Romeva, Turull and Bassa have in force for embezzlement after the Government pardoned their prison sentences in 2021.
As they point out, “the disqualification sentences in question cannot be considered finalized and extinguished,” since The actions for which they were convicted are not included in the scope of application of the amnesty law.
The prosecutors They also oppose the lifting of the national arrest warrant that are active against Puigdemont, which would complicate his return to Spain. They have the same opinion about the cases of Comín and Puig.
It should be remembered that the Supreme Court prosecuted the three in absentia for an alleged crime of embezzlement and one of disobedience. Instructor Pablo Llarena is waiting to take his investigative statement in order to move towards trial. He has a national arrest warrant, but the euro warrant is deactivated.
Application of the law
The four prosecutors They have delivered to García Ortiz the document with their conclusions in a meeting held this Thursday. The attorney general had called them to the meeting along with the two chief prosecutors of the Criminal Section of the Supreme Court and the prosecutor of the Constitutional Court. ANDTomorrow, Friday, he is scheduled to meet with the senior prosecutors of Catalonia.
According to the sources consulted, the meeting discussed the procedural paths for the application of the law in all the cases it affects.
It should be remembered that the amnesty law establishes that The courts will have to apply the rule within a maximum period of two months. The Supreme Court and the courts and tribunals of Catalonia are those that accumulate the majority of cases related to the independence process.
In the Constitutional Court, for its part, unconstitutionality issues are expected to arise —by judges in cases of doubts about the legality of the law— or unconstitutionality appeals.
On this point, legal sources recall that the courts Before making any decision, they must consult the parties to the procedure, including the Prosecutor’s Office itself.. Hence the importance of the Public Ministry establishing a criterion on the application of the legal text.