The conservative Partido Popular (PP) is under the spotlight following new revelations in the Montoro corruption case.
The timing is awkward for the party, whose leader Alberto Feijoo has been enjoying raking Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez over the coals for the Koldo scandal currently engulfing his ruling PSOE party.
Now, both the Socialists in power and the leading opposition party are grappling with serious corruption investigations, in what could prove a gift to far-right party Vox.
The ongoing judicial investigation into former Spanish Finance Minister Cristobal Montoro – and the top ranks of his former ministry – for allegedly helping private companies reduce their tax burdens in exchange for money, has now extended into Andalucia.
Known as the Montoro case, the probe – now in its seventh year – has uncovered a complex network in which the consultancy firm Equipo Economico, co-founded by Montoro himself, is alleged to have acted as an intermediary between major corporations and the Spanish Treasury (Hacienda).
According to court documents, large companies made multi-million euro payments to Equipo Economico, which in turn allegedly leveraged its influence to push for tax breaks or legal reforms that benefitted its clients.
Investigators believe that the resulting financial gains were funneled through a network of shell companies and proxies in order to obscure both the money’s origin and its true beneficiaries.
A judge in Tarragona is now trying to determine whether these companies were used for money laundering purposes and to secretly redistribute illicit commissions.
Andalucia plays a key role in this network, particularly the town of Nerja (Malaga), where five shell companies under scrutiny are concentrated.
Econodos SL: €3.6 million from a single client
Among the firms under investigation is Econodos SL, a company registered in a quiet residential development in Nerja since 2016. According to investigators, Econodos had only one client between 2008 and 2017: Equipo Economico.
The firm billed the consultancy €3.6 million over that period, representing 99.24% of its total revenue. Investigators consider this evidence of a front company lacking real commercial activity.
Until late 2015, one of its administrators was Ricardo Martínez Rico, a co-founder of Equipo Económico and brother of Montoro’s former chief of staff. Today, he retains control of the company through Falumar Inversiones SL, a Madrid-based firm he solely manages. Also named in the case is Covadonga Gomez Garrido, an employee at the consultancy who received payments from Econodos.
The company’s registered office is located at the same address as Limacar SL, another company under investigation, in the Pueblo Chimenea gated community in Nerja.
The location itself offers no signs of economic activity – just residential homes, some with gardens and pools. The house linked to the investigation is larger and more modern than its neighbors, but bears no external indication of hosting a business.
Limacar SL has also drawn attention for a 2010 property purchase in Nerja worth €700,000, bought from the Armijo Gonzalez family. One of the sellers, Miguel Armijo Gonzalez, served as a Vox party councillor between 2019 and 2023. The property later became Limacar’s registered office.
Arquinerja: From local council to court records
Another key player is Arquinerja SL, a property development firm managed by Bernardo Pozuelo, a former PP councillor who oversaw tourism in Nerja from 2011 to 2015. Court records suggest the company was used as a shell to launder or redirect money from Equipo Economico.
Arquinerja was founded in 1998 and, according to Spain’s commercial registry, has only two employees. In recent years, its turnover has fluctuated, reaching €1.1 million in 2022. The judge has requested banking records for the company, though no direct payments from Equipo Economico have been recorded.
In addition to Arquinerja, the Malaga-based Andaluza de Gases SA is cited in the case as the operator of a gas installation allegedly ‘favoured’ by fiscal changes.
In Sevilla, the multinational Abengoa stands out as one of the large companies that allegedly hired Equipo Economico under pressure — or to curry favour with the Rajoy government. Between 2008 and 2017, five subsidiaries of Abengoa paid the firm €4.4 million.
The payments were described as being for ‘strategic reports,’ though investigators say they were actually fees for political influence.
According to the documents, the firm benefitted from legal reforms that preserved subsidies for renewable energy — reforms allegedly influenced or softened at Montoro’s request. While the broader energy sector suffered market losses, Abengoa saw a notable share price surge in 2014.
The investigation continues.
Read more Spain news at the Spanish Eye.
