Spanish judge upholds passport seizure for Begoña Gómez, citing Craxi flight

Judge Juan Carlos Peinado has reaffirmed the seizure of Begoña Gómez's passport and her travel ban, arguing that the risk of flight exists even for high-profile individuals with police escorts. In a ruling issued June 30 and made public July 8, Peinado cited the 1994 flight of former Italian Prime Minister Bettino Craxi to Tunisia as a precedent, noting that Craxi also had security details Source: El Mundo.

Key arguments

• Peinado dismissed the defense's claim that Gómez's constant police escort eliminates flight risk, stating that an escort's duty is to protect from external threats, not to prevent the escorted person from leaving Source: El Confidencial.
• The judge clarified that his earlier suggestion that police might help Gómez escape was a "mere hypothesis" and not an assertion of likelihood, though he defended the existence of internal affairs units as evidence that individual misconduct is possible Source: ABC.
• He rejected the defense's request to reverse the precautionary measures, emphasizing that no one has argued that the flight risk does not exist Source: El Mundo.

Reactions and context

Police unions and Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska had previously criticized Peinado's comments about potential police involvement. The minister complained to the General Council of the Judiciary, which opened a preliminary inquiry Source: El Mundo. Meanwhile, a substitute judge allowed Gómez to travel to London for her daughter's graduation but denied her request to attend the NATO summit in Ankara, citing Turkey's non-EU status . The main accusation against Gómez carries a potential sentence of 24 years in prison .