Begoña Gómez seeks judge's OK for NATO summit and graduation trip

Begoña Gómez, wife of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, has formally requested authorization from Judge Juan Carlos Peinado to travel abroad for the first time since her passport was seized as a precautionary measure. She seeks to accompany Sánchez to the NATO summit in Ankara (July 7–10) and then travel to London for her daughter's graduation, returning on July 10. Source: La Vanguardia, ABC

Legal context

Gómez faces an upcoming trial by jury on four charges: influence peddling, corruption in private business, embezzlement, and misappropriation. On June 20, Judge Peinado ordered the seizure of her passport, a ban on leaving Spain without authorization, and biweekly court appearances, citing flight risk. Source: El Mundo, El Confidencial The defense has appealed these measures. Source: El Mundo

The request

In a written submission, attorney Antonio Camacho argues the trip is official: Gómez was invited by Emine Erdoğan, wife of Turkey's president. The outbound leg will be on the official plane with the Spanish delegation; the return from London will be commercial. Camacho stresses that Gómez will be under the constant protection of the Prime Minister's security detail, which "by itself already guarantees the absolute safety of all movements." Source: El Mundo, El Confidencial

Disagreement over security

The defense's argument directly contradicts the judge's own reasoning. In his order imposing the precautionary measures, Peinado wrote that the very agents assigned to protect Gómez "could, at a given moment, either on their own initiative or following orders from their hierarchical superiors, be precisely those who collaborate in the action or actions carried out to facilitate that escape." Source: Euronews This statement sparked controversy, prompting Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska to file a complaint with the CGPJ.