In an unprecedented move for Spain’s modern democratic history, former Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero is now the subject of a formal criminal investigation over allegations of influence peddling linked to a 2021 public bailout of a small Spanish airline, the nation’s top criminal court confirmed Tuesday.
The investigation, which marks the first time a former Spanish head of government has faced formal probes in modern history, has escalated political pressure on sitting Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who is already grappling with overlapping corruption controversies involving his close family members and top political allies. Zapatero, who led Spain from 2004 to 2011, was initially not closely affiliated with Sanchez’s leadership faction but has emerged as one of the sitting prime minister’s most high-profile and vocal defenders in recent years.
Per the court’s official statement, Zapatero has been ordered to give sworn testimony on June 2, and law enforcement teams have already executed search warrants at his personal offices as well as three unidentified private companies connected to the case. The investigation centers on a €53 million ($62 million) emergency government loan awarded to Plus Ultra, a small Madrid-based airline that operated a limited route network connecting Spain to Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela with a fleet of just a few Airbus A340 aircraft.
The bailout was approved through a national public fund created to support strategically important companies that suffered severe financial disruption during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost from the moment the rescue was announced, opposition parties raised sharp questions about the airline’s eligibility for the public funds, pointing to its extremely limited operational scale and its well-documented ties to Venezuelan business interests. The airline counts multiple Venezuelan-linked shareholders, a detail that has kept political controversy around the bailout simmering for years.
Spanish media outlets have reported that investigators are currently examining whether a consulting firm tied to one of Zapatero’s close associates served as an intermediary for suspect financial transactions connected to the bailout, including alleged improper payments tied to the approval of the emergency loan. Authorities are also tracing potential unreported commissions and irregular financial flows linked to the rescue deal. Zapatero has repeatedly and forcefully denied any wrongdoing, asserting he never received any improper payments from Plus Ultra or any party connected to the case.
The main opposition conservative Popular Party (PP) has seized on the investigation to attack both Zapatero and Sanchez, labeling the former prime minister Sanchez’s “political muse” and claiming the two are bound by shared corruption. In a public statement, PP argued “Both used their families to enrich themselves and both degraded the institutions they represented.”
The criticism comes as Sanchez already faces separate corruption controversies touching his inner circle: his brother David is set to stand trial on influence peddling charges, while his wife Begona Gomez is under investigation in a separate unrelated corruption probe. Sanchez has repeatedly dismissed all cases against his family as manufactured political attacks, rather than legitimate criminal inquiries. His former top political ally, ex-Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos, who helped propel Sanchez to the national premiership in 2018, recently concluded his own corruption trial, with a verdict still pending. Abalos stands accused of accepting illegal kickbacks in exchange for awarding irregular contracts for personal protective face masks at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, when global supplies were severely depleted.
The growing slate of corruption cases has already eroded public support for Sanchez’s Socialist Party, which has suffered a string of devastating electoral defeats in recent regional elections, including in its historic long-time stronghold of Andalusia. Just this past Sunday, the Socialists secured only 28 out of 109 seats in the Andalusian regional parliament, marking the worst electoral result in the party’s history in the southern region. Zapatero had personally campaigned for the Socialist candidate in the race, Maria Jesus Montero, Sanchez’s former deputy prime minister and ex-finance minister.
Despite opposition demands to move up the next national election, currently scheduled for 2027, Sanchez has refused to accelerate the national vote. The Socialist Party has come out swinging in defense of Zapatero, pointing to his landmark progressive policy achievements during his time in office, including the legalization of same-sex marriage and sweeping expansions of social welfare programs, and arguing the investigation itself is politically motivated. “Zapatero’s time in office was marked by an ambitious programme to extend rights, equality, and social protection. The right and far right have never forgiven him for these advances,” the party said in an official statement.