Court Upholds Two-Year Sentence for Toño Sanchís in Belén Esteban Fraud Case

The Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Madrid (TSJM) has confirmed a two-year prison sentence for Toño Sanchís, the former representative of Belén Esteban, for a continued crime of misappropriation of funds totaling over €475,000. Source: ABC; La Vanguardia

Background

Belén Esteban signed an exclusive representation contract with Sanchís's agency, Agencia de Servicios Lorant S.L., on May 13, 2009. The agreement stipulated a 20% commission, with 80% of earnings to be transferred to her company BEM Imaging S.L. The relationship was built on trust, and Esteban did not supervise the financial calculations. Source: El Mundo

The Fraud

Between the contract's start and 2015, Sanchís applied commissions higher than agreed. He instructed the accounting firm to report lower amounts for Esteban's share, pocketing the difference. The misappropriated funds came from contracts with several production companies, including:

• €164,748 from La Fábrica de la Tele (producer of Sálvame and Deluxe)
• €362,248 in total from various contracts, plus an additional €86,703 detected during account rendering, bringing the total recognized harm to €475,571. Source: Infobae; El Confidencial

Recovery and Aftermath

After ending the contract in 2015, Esteban filed a civil lawsuit, obtaining a judgment of €388,868 against the agency. However, in execution she recovered only €49,318 in cash and a mortgaged property valued at €375,000 but burdened by a mortgage. The agency entered insolvency in 2020 and was dissolved. The TSJM's ruling now confirms the criminal penalty, rejecting all appeals. Source: ABC; El Mundo