Pedro Trapote and the ‘fruit of the poisoned tree’: the doctrine that has saved the businessman from a lawsuit against the Treasury

The well-known businessman was acquitted this Monday by the Provincial Court of Madrid of the tax crime he was accused of and for which the prosecution requested more than 40 million euros, including fines and compensation, as well as prison sentences of more than six years. The lack of evidence has not been the reason for such splendid news for Pedro Trapote but their origin: illegal.

The Justice has applied in the case the doctrine known as the ‘fruit of the poisoned tree’, which defends that any null evidence that has a direct link with other evidence should also be considered null. In this case, the Provincial Court has recriminated the Tax Agency for using information that had not been authorized by the investigating judge, consciously hiding this point. In the court’s opinion, the prosecution used illegal evidence prohibited in article 11.1 of the Organic Law of the Judiciary, which is why it has declared the entries and searches carried out at the corporate addresses of the accused null and void.

Pedro Trapote, married to Begoña García Vaquero, is one of the most popular leisure and nightlife entrepreneurs in Madrid. Owner of such emblematic establishments as Joy Eslava, Teatro Barceló or Chocolatería San Ginés, he was awarded the Madrid Tourist Merit Award in 2011 for his business career.