MADRID, Spain — Spanish anti-corruption prosecutors consider it evident that former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero leveraged his influence at high levels of government to facilitate the 53 million euro public bailout of the airline Plus Ultra, despite ongoing and categorical denials from the former leader.
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According to sources within the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, the accumulation of evidence points to a clear pattern of influence peddling. Three individuals currently under investigation in the case have recently confirmed that the former head of government intervened on behalf of the airline and received financial compensation for his efforts. However, a central question remains unresolved in the ongoing probe: neither the suspects nor the National Police’s Financial Crimes Unit (UDEF) can currently pinpoint the exact public official or authority who was influenced.
Despite these mounting allegations, Zapatero continues to deny any involvement in mediating the public aid. In his first interview since becoming a formal subject of the investigation, he reiterated the same defense he presented to Investigating Judge José Luis Calama in June. He stated unequivocally that he did not speak with anyone from the State Society for Industrial Participation (SEPI) or the central government regarding the Plus Ultra rescue, insisting that he had no role in the operation whatsoever.
Currently, the case file before the National Court does not contain direct communications from Zapatero discussing the bailout, aside from routine messages exchanged with his secretary that make no mention of the operation. However, investigators have gathered significant circumstantial evidence, including third-party communications. A critical component of the prosecution’s case relies on intercepted WhatsApp messages from the mobile phone of Rodolfo Reyes, Plus Ultra’s main shareholder. These communications were obtained by United States authorities and subsequently shared with Spain’s National Court. Zapatero’s legal defense team is actively attempting to nullify these intercepted messages, arguing against their admissibility as evidence.
Anticorrupción ve "evidente" que Zapatero ejerció su "capacidad de influencia" en "altos niveles de decisión" | Por @PBAlbornoz https://t.co/1Ve1iEy2OA
— 20minutos.es (@20m) July 25, 2026
The prosecution’s primary theory centers on the financial trail. Authorities allege that payments made by Plus Ultra to companies owned by Julio Martínez Martínez, a close associate of Zapatero, were channeled through front companies designed to conceal the former prime minister as the ultimate beneficiary of the funds. Both intercepted messages and testimonies from Plus Ultra executives indicate that the airline paid Martínez Martínez’s companies to secure the former leader’s mediation. The airline’s leadership reportedly paid over half a million euros, operating under the belief that Zapatero was orchestrating the rescue from behind the scenes.
Investigators highlight Martínez Martínez’s apparent access to privileged information as a key indicator of Zapatero’s involvement. UDEF agents discovered messages in which Martínez Martínez congratulated Plus Ultra executives on February 26, 2021, confidently predicting the approval of the public aid. This occurred four days before the SEPI board approved the rescue and eleven days before the Council of Ministers gave its final validation in early March. When questioned by the court, Martínez Martínez admitted he could not have wielded such influence or possessed such foresight on his own, effectively positioning himself as a mere messenger acting on behalf of the former head of government.
Zapatero has completely rejected this narrative. During his recent public statements, he insisted he had no knowledge of the SEPI board’s intentions, knew no one on the board, and did not intervene in the processing of the funding request.
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The investigation is approaching a critical phase. The investigating magistrate is scheduled to question two senior Plus Ultra executives on September 7 and 8. These executives have previously submitted written statements to the National Court explicitly pointing to Zapatero’s involvement in securing the rescue. While the exact target of the alleged influence remains unidentified, anti-corruption authorities maintain their conviction that the former prime minister utilized his high-level connections to ensure the financial survival of the airline.
