Thirteen million face masks. That was the order at the centre of what Spanish media call the Koldo case, a pandemic-era bribery scandal that has pulled in a former transport minister, his closest aide and, more than once, the ruling Socialist Party itself.
In June 2026 it produced the first verdict. Spain’s Supreme Court jailed former Transport Minister José Luis Ábalos for 24 years and three months, convicting him of criminal organization, bribery, embezzlement and influence peddling. His aide Koldo García, the man whose name the case carries, got 19 years, eight months and one day. The businessman Víctor de Aldama received a suspended sentence of 4 1/2 years, plus 12 months of community service, in recognition of his cooperation. His prison term would apply if he reoffends or skips his twice-yearly activity reports.
How the masks deal worked
According to the court’s own statement, two state-run bodies under the transport ministry, Puertos del Estado and ADIF, bought the 13 million masks from Aldama’s company, Soluciones de Gestión. In return, the court found, Ábalos received 10,000 euros for “fixed expenses”, and two women friends of his were given jobs. One also got an apartment. Aldama leased him homes in Marbella and in La Línea de la Concepción, near Gibraltar.
The ruling, adopted unanimously, said the three men formed a criminal organization with a division of roles. The judges also spoke of serious damage to public trust. Corruption, the court said, undermines the “democratic architecture of the state”.
Spain lost almost 120,000 people to COVID-19, and 13 million of its 50 million residents caught the virus, the Epoch Times noted in its report. That is the backdrop for a deal over protective equipment.
Why it reached the party
Ábalos served as minister of transport, mobility and the urban agenda until Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez dismissed him in July 2021. Sánchez had taken office in 2018 promising to clean up politics after scandals under his conservative predecessor, Mariano Rajoy. EurActiv recounted that a leaked police report later described a kickback-for-contract scheme linked to Santos Cerdán, who succeeded Ábalos as the PSOE’s organisational secretary. Sánchez answered by announcing an external audit of party finances from 2017 to 2024.
That audit, according to a document seen by the broadcaster RTVE, found no evidence of illicit financing or undeclared funds. Cash payouts were “consistent, closed, and verifiable”, though the auditors flagged “striking” small expenses for restaurants and hotels. Ábalos and García were in pre-trial detention while it was written. A separate secret investigation by the National Court and the Supreme Court looked at whether they laundered illegal commissions through the party’s treasury.
Sánchez has consistently called such matters isolated cases rather than structural corruption. After the sentencing, opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo demanded that he step down and call an election, saying a prime minister answers for his ministers. Feijóo ruled out a no-confidence vote. A general election is due within 12 months, with the PSOE trailing the People’s Party in the polls.
Sources
- No Evidence Of Illegal Financing Found In Spain's Ruling Socialist Party, Audit Says – Eurasia Review
- Spanish Transport Minister Jailed for 24 Years in Corruption Case | The Epoch Times
Sources
- The court cases plaguing Spain's ruling Socialist… | The Straits Times
- Pedro Sánchez: how a string of corruption allegations could make …
