Catalan separatist Puigdemont in Barcelona despite an arrest warrant

Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont has returned to Spain after nearly seven years in exile. He appeared at a meeting of his supporters in Barcelona this morning around 9am.

Puigdemont had returned announced yesterday. He wants to attend the inauguration of the new regional president of Calatonia, the socialist Salvador Illa. He wants this despite a Spanish arrest warrant against him. Puigdemont is accused of embezzling public funds because the Catalan government paid for the illegal independence referendum in 2017.

The Catalan has been in exile in Brussels since October 2017. After the banned referendum, he may have fled to Belgium in the trunk of a car. He spent much of his time as a member of the European Parliament for his Junts per Catalunya party.