Gaspar Zarrías Admits Paying 'Plumber' Leire Díez €16,000 to Link Villarejo to ERE Case
Former Andalusian socialist leader Gaspar Zarrías testified in Madrid that he paid 16,000 euros to Leire Díez, known as the 'plumber,' through his consulting firm Zaño. The payment was intended to fund an investigation into alleged connections between former police commissioner José Manuel Villarejo and the ERE corruption case, for which Zarrías was previously convicted. Díez, accompanied by businessman Javier Pérez Dolset, approached Zarrías in 2021 claiming to possess damaging information. Despite receiving judicial documentation and a four-month contract in 2024, Díez failed to produce any evidence linking Villarejo to the case. Zarrías submitted a pendrive containing Díez’s work to the court but did not provide the original computer source. The contract termination coincided with media reports exposing Díez’s activities at PSOE headquarters. Zarrías denied that the publicity caused the split, citing family and health reasons for his firm's subsequent closure. This testimony is part of the broader 'Fontanera case' investigating illegal intelligence operations and disinformation campaigns targeting political figures and institutions within Spain.
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Gaspar Zarrías Admits Paying 'Plumber' Leire Díez €16,000 to Link Villarejo to ERE Case
Former Andalusian socialist leader Gaspar Zarrías testified in Madrid that he paid 16,000 euros to Leire Díez, known as the 'plumber,' through his consulting firm Zaño. The payment was intended to fund an investigation into alleged connections between former police commissioner José Manuel Villarejo and the ERE corruption case, for which Zarrías was previously convicted. Díez, accompanied by businessman Javier Pérez Dolset, approached Zarrías in 2021 claiming to possess damaging information. Despite receiving judicial documentation and a four-month contract in 2024, Díez failed to produce any evidence linking Villarejo to the case. Zarrías submitted a pendrive containing Díez’s work to the court but did not provide the original computer source. The contract termination coincided with media reports exposing Díez’s activities at PSOE headquarters. Zarrías denied that the publicity caused the split, citing family and health reasons for his firm's subsequent closure. This testimony is part of the broader 'Fontanera case' investigating illegal intelligence operations and disinformation campaigns targeting political figures and institutions within Spain.
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