The prosecution requests five years in prison for Escañuela

The Prosecutor against Corruption and Organized Crime has submitted to the Court of Instruction number 12 of Seville a letter of accusation, in which requests five years in prison and eight years of special disqualification for the former president of the Royal Spanish Tennis Federation José Luis Escañuela, for alleged crimes of unfair administration and misappropriation in the management of the Spanish Tennis Foundation, with which he would have paid his commitments as Rey Gaspar in the Three Wise Men parade in Seville.

In the indictment, collected by Europa Press, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office addresses events that occurred within the Spanish Tennis Foundation when the positions of president, vice president and general secretary were held by its patrons as well José Luis Escañuela Romana, president of the Royal Spanish Tennis Federation between 2009 and 2015; José Luis Terroba Gutiérrez and María Olvido Aguilera García, respectively.

This, in a context in which the aforementioned foundation was created in December 2009 with a contribution of 60,000 euros from the Spanish Tennis Federation.

According to the Prosecutor's Office, although the Foundations Law 50/2002 determines that the positions held by Escañuela, Terroba and Aguilera García “are free, with any remuneration contrary to the Law, without this preventing the expenses that duly justified and that the position causes them; the aforementioned inserts, “taking advantage of their position and in order to obtain an illicit economic benefit, they made an improper use of the foundation's assets, as well as they made themselves with amounts that in no way corresponded to them. “

The Prosecutor's Office, in that sense, states that after the foundation received 174,395.89 euros from the Spanish Tennis Federation in 2010 and 210,766.63 euros in 2012, Escañuela made various payments “at the expense of the foundation's assets without stating any justification and without any approval by the patronage “of the entity, including 37,740 euros among such payments thanks to an agreement signed between him and the Ateneo de Sevilla for activities of the royal courtship Christmas, “since Escañuela Romana had been chosen as King Gaspar in the Cabalgata de Reyes de Sevilla”.

THE CABALGATA DE REYES

At the same time, there is the payment of 12,716 euros from the foundation, for the acquisition of sweets from the Three Wise Men parade; as well as 9,554 euros to pay Escañuela and his wife to the Australian Tennis Open, since according to the Spanish Tennis Federation, “it is not proven that this trip was made in the capacity of president of the same, being feasible that it was a private trip.” In any case, his wife had no position in any of the entities and “in no case should the funds have been used” to pay for his trip.

Another payment of 9,558 euros is charged to the foundation for a law firm “constituted as a limited company owned” by Escañuela himself.; as well as the stay for four days in a Roland Garros championship “of the owner of the Sato Gymnasium in the Seville town and the director of the Antares Foundation of the same town, people who have nothing to do” with the foundation or the federation.

Furthermore, “despite the gratuitous nature of the position of employer”, The three defendants “in collusion” agreed on a “monthly allowance” for each of them, obtaining in total Aguilera García, secretary of the foundation, 15,950 euros; Vice President Terroba 3,382.10 euros and President Escañuela 8,317.84 euros.

MORE MONEY

In addition, the Prosecutor's Office indicates 125,711.69 euros transferred from the Royal Spanish Tennis Federation to the foundation, the result of a refund by the Pablo de Olavide University of Seville, “without the defendants, in view of the positions they held in the foundation, have been able to justify the final destination of the transfer of these funds.”

Given these facts, the Prosecutor's Office detects a crime of unfair administration in its modality of unfair administration of fraudulent management of social assets and another crime of misappropriation, claiming for Escañuela five years in prison, eight years of special disqualification for positions in foundations or similar entities and a fine of 3,000 euros; and for Terroba and Aguilera García four years in prison, seven years of special disqualification and a fine of 2,700 euros in both cases.

In addition, it claims that Escañuela return 90,103 euros to the foundation, that Terroba return 33,382.10 euros and that the remaining defendant return 15,950 euros to the entity, as well as that all of them jointly replace 13,683.37 euros for “the undue payment of the employer's contribution to Social Security (for their emoluments) and 125,711.69 euros for the amounts returned by the Pablo Olavide University and whose destination is unknown”.