Former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero denied all allegations against him on Wednesday this week during his three-hour historic appearance before a judge at the Audiencia Nacional court in Madrid. He firmly rejected any suggestion that he exerted influence over the public bailout of airline Plus Ultra.

The hearing, the first in democratic Spain in which a former prime minister has appeared as an investigated party before a judge, saw him state that he had not contacted any officials or authorities to push through the 53 million-euro rescue package.

He insisted that payments he received from Análisis Relevante, a company linked to his friend and alleged frontman Julio Martínez Martínez ('Julito'), corresponded to genuine professional work. “All the work has been proven and demonstrated,” he told the judge.

Zapatero answered only the judge, not the prosecution or other parties, denying any contact with Plus Ultra's leadership during the decisive phase of the file, stating that he only met its president in 2024, three years after the Spanish Cabinet approved the bailout aid. He likewise denied any relationship with Rodolfo Reyes, former main shareholder of Plus Ultra.

One of the central issues was his relationship with his friend 'Julito'. Zapatero confirmed a friendly relationship but described it as professional, claiming he carried out “global consultancy” work on request and was paid at year-end, without a written contract.

According to investigators, Análisis Relevante transferred 490,780 euros to Zapatero and 239,755 euros to Whathefav, the company of his daughters. The former PM insisted the payments were unrelated to the bailout.

The judge questioned him closely about the nature of these reports and their usefulness for specific companies. Zapatero said some were written and others oral and of a general nature based on his institutional experience. He also denied any offshore structures, links to Dubai-based companies, or involvement in international schemes connected to Plus Ultra.

Passport not withdrawn

The former prime minister left the hearing with his rights intact as a free man, a relief for him and, by extension, for the government and the PSOE party. However, the judge's four-page order noted that suspicions remained, despite rejecting precautionary measures such as withdrawing his passport.

Zapatero declined to speak about jewellery seized from his office, preliminarily valued at 1.3 million euros, which is now the subject of a separate investigation.

On Thursday, the inquiry took a new turn when the judge agreed to formally investigate his daughters, Alba and Laura Rodríguez Espinosa, and his secretary, Gertrudis Alcázar, described by investigators as being at the operational centre of the alleged scheme.