MADRID, May 19 (Reuters) – Former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero is being investigated for alleged influence peddling and related crimes, the country’s High Court said on Tuesday.
Zapatero’s office in Madrid was being searched alongside three other premises, the court said in a statement, adding the former premier had been summoned to testify on June 2.
Zapatero is a key ally of current Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and the case piles more pressure on Sanchez, who is already dogged by a corruption investigation into alleged kickbacks involving key members of his inner circle, as well as probes involving his wife and his brother.
The investigation is part of the so-called Plus Ultra case, linked to a state rescue worth 53 million euros ($62 million) in 2021 of the domestic airline Plus Ultra through state holding company SEPI during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The bailout became politically controversial because critics said Plus Ultra was not clearly strategic, had weak finances and links to Venezuelan shareholders. The High Court is examining whether the aid was properly approved.
The conservative opposition People’s Party has repeatedly criticised Zapatero’s business ties in Venezuela in the years after leaving government. Zapatero has denied any wrongdoing before a lower house committee.
Zapatero led Spain between 2004 and 2011, winning two absolute parliamentary majorities.
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(Reporting by David Latona; Editing by Charlie Devereux)
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