Overview
- Testifying in Madrid, Elisa Pinto said Javier López Madrid told her he had hired Commissioner José Manuel Villarejo to bury any complaint and “put her in her place,” describing years of unwanted messages, calls and uninvited visits.
- López Madrid denied hiring or paying Villarejo and portrayed himself as the victim of a harassment campaign, while Villarejo said he does not know Pinto and refused a court request to change seats.
- The Audiencia Nacional proceeding is limited to an alleged bribery offense over the supposed hiring, with Pinto’s legal team seeking six-year sentences for López Madrid and Villarejo and four years for Villarejo’s associate Rafael Redondo.
- Pinto’s filing cites a 2013 agenda note reading “10.000 euros a cuenta” and alleged call records between López Madrid and Villarejo, but Internal Affairs agents testified they could not corroborate any hiring in searches and device traces.
- A Guardia Civil witness reported signs a López Madrid phone was manipulated before it was handed to investigators, and a separate Madrid trial next month seeks 13-year prison terms over alleged threats, coercion and a stabbing.