Overview
- Magistrate Leopoldo Puente issued an auto de procesamiento, concluding the main health-contracts strand of the 'Koldo' case is ready to proceed to trial.
- The order cites suspected bribery, criminal organization, influence peddling and embezzlement tied to alleged preferential access to public contracts for economic benefit.
- This strand focuses on irregular mask purchases during COVID-19 that involved companies linked to businessman Víctor de Aldama.
- A separate probe into alleged rigging of public works that implicates former PSOE organization secretary Santos Cerdán remains in an earlier investigative phase with Cerdán in pretrial detention.
- The judge recounts ties among the accused, including a 2019 Mexico trip and contacts through Aldama’s brother, and stresses the decision formalizes evidence but does not constitute a conviction.