The head of the Court of First Instance of Vera (Almería) and the 4th Instruction provisionally released one of the seven detainees this Wednesday in the municipality of Mojacar (Almería) after the intervention of the Civilian Civil Police in an alleged plot to buy votes by mail. by the Guard and the UCO, which also led to dozens of searches and three investigations.
Judicial sources confirmed that the first of those arrested to appear before the judge was released on charges of alleged crimes under investigation at each summons of the investigation as part of the investigation.
Therefore, it is expected that during the day of this Friday, the rest of the arrested and investigated persons will be available to the judicial authorities, including “number 2” and “number 5” of the PSOE list for the 28th local elections. May, Francisco Bartolome Flores Torres and Cristóbal Vizcaino González, respectively, who for the first time participated in the elections under the socialist acronym.
tapped phones
A judge investigating alleged vote-buying in Mojacar (Almeria) has authorized the wiretapping of at least one of the seven detainees by agents of the Civil Guard UCO; Specifically, that of Cristóbal Vizcaino, who appears as an independent in the PSOE list and is directly mentioned by name in the complaint filed on April 14 by the mayor of Mojaveira, Rosa María Cano (PP), and that was the germ. operation.
Sources in the case indicate that several people came this Thursday to the building of the local police in Vera (Almería), where the UCO has established which is the center of its operations, to testify as witnesses as a result of the revelations received. From the complaints and documents seized by the investigators during the search of the ten houses.
A large part of the investigation focused on clarifying the contacts that the main suspects had made during those weeks with the residents of the municipality, sometimes with militants or socialist supporters, to determine whether the postal votes were arranged. on the change in earnings.
“clear signs”
The proceedings, which are classified, although the investigating judge is expected to overturn this decision in the coming hours, lasted a month, during which a number of procedures were carried out to determine whether electoral fraud is taking place in this municipality. and that they had collected “clear evidence”.
The complaint signed by Rosa María Cano, who is participating in these local elections as the number 2 of the PP and is not running for mayor again, indicates that she was aware of the facts that are now being prosecuted through various residents. city.
An alleged plot broken up by the Civil Guard in Mojacar, in which seven detainees and three other people were investigated, tried to obtain postal votes among Latin American citizens, according to data obtained from an operation carried out by the Central Operative Unit (UCO). of the Civil Guard.
money or employment
Among those arrested, in addition to Francisco Bartolome Flores – PSOE number 2 and son of a former mayor and former Socialist senator – and Cristóbal Vizcaino, there are six Spanish nationals, as well as citizens born in Paraguay. Colombia and Ecuador, which acted as mediators.
In the records, researchers extracted mail-in ballots as well as census lists listing the names of certain citizens as part of the material now being analyzed by agents of the armed institute. At the moment, no new arrests or charges are foreseen, although the new steps of the investigation will be determined by the statements and the study of the recovered documents.
According to sources in the case, those involved in the conspiracy offered sums of around 100 euros, although in some cases this figure would rise to 200 euros, which would be aimed at people with low purchasing power, including mainly citizens of Latin origin. There are also clues that point to other obligations in exchange for the vote, for example by employing them after municipal elections.
Source: El Diario
