Former Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero has formally appealed a judicial decision that allows the National Police to investigate his personal bank accounts and those of his close circle. The appeal, filed by his legal defense, challenges the scope of the authorization granted by Judge José Luis Calama, who is overseeing the ongoing investigation into the so-called Plus Ultra case. The judge had previously permitted the Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF) to examine financial records belonging to Zapatero, his two daughters, his secretary, and business associate Julio Martínez Martínez.
The legal dispute centers on the breadth of the investigative mandate. Zapatero’s defense argues that the current authorization is too broad and could lead to a "prospecting" investigation, which is prohibited under Spanish law. Specifically, the appeal seeks to limit the UDEF's ability to freely expand its search for information without obtaining prior judicial approval for each new step. The defense contends that such an open-ended mandate risks violating the privacy rights of the individuals involved by exposing financial data that may be irrelevant to the criminal proceedings.
Furthermore, the appeal questions the necessity and proportionality of the request for internal bank communications and the specific timeframe of the investigation. The defense notes that the inquiry covers a period extending beyond the relevant dates of the alleged events, arguing that there is no clear justification for accessing data from 2020 to the present. By challenging these parameters, Zapatero’s legal team aims to restrict the scope of the police inquiry while maintaining that the current approach is overly intrusive.
This development follows the judge's earlier move to scrutinize financial movements linked to the 2021 government bailout of the airline Plus Ultra. Investigators are looking into allegations of influence peddling and money laundering, with the court previously identifying a potential network of financial transactions involving the former prime minister. As the legal battle continues, the court must now decide whether to uphold the current investigative powers or impose the limitations requested by the defense to ensure the probe remains focused on specific, relevant evidence.