Anticorrupción seeks expanded appraisal of Zapatero's jewels

The Spanish Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (Anticorrupción) has requested an expansion of the expert appraisal of the jewels seized from former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, initially valued at 1.3 million euros, to determine their current market value and the date they were set Source: lavanguardia.

New appraisal request

Anticorrupción filed a motion with judge José Luis Calama, who is investigating the Plus Ultra case, to order jeweler Ansorena to conduct an expanded gemological analysis. The prosecution wants to know whether the preliminary valuation (set as "replacement value" for insurance purposes) reflects actual market prices and when the pieces were assembled [Sources: abces, elespanol].

The jewels and their composition

The lot of 103 pieces includes 41 earrings, 15 necklaces, 11 bracelets, 8 rings, 8 watches, and 20 other luxury items. Among the most valuable are a white gold necklace with diamonds and two natural Zambian emeralds (€278,000), a white gold necklace with 13 Thai sapphires and diamonds (€220,000), and a natural ruby and brilliant necklace (€155,000) Source: elmundoes.

Zapatero's response and silence

Zapatero, in his first interview since the investigation, denied "patrimonial intent" or "intent to defraud" and said the jewels were "a personal courtesy gift from many years ago" without specifying the donor Source: elconfidencial. However, during his June 17 court appearance he refused to answer questions about the jewels, a silence that investigators consider a "very powerful indicium" against him Source: elmundoes.