The prosecution has presented its report this morning in the trial that is held at the National Court. He accuses the former bank managers of a crime of misappropriation, related to the operation with the disappeared businessman Martín Gual, who was persuaded to participate in the purchase, financed by Sa Nostra, of the land by Son Bordoy, which were owned by two companies in danger of bankruptcy. For this crime, each of these three defendants is required to be sentenced to four years in prison. In addition, this crime is also accused, although with a lower penalty, to the executive of Martín Gual, the technician Javier Collador, who was in charge of the project to achieve the change of urban classification of this plot of Palma.
In her report, the prosecutor accused the bank managers of having breached the basic rules that were established in the statutes of Sa Nostra, andn those who were forced to act with prudence when accepting to lend money. The accusation states that all managers knew that they were acting illegally when promoting the operation of Martín Gual, because they knew, because it was indicated in the reports of the risk department, that the economic situation of this businessman was difficult and therefore nor there was a guarantee that he could return the money, as it happened. The Public Prosecutor also ensures that the Board of Directors of Sa Nostra, the last body to approve the authorization to carry out operations, actually it was managed by the CEOs, deciding on loans before getting approval from the council. “The approval of the Board of Directors was a formality, but the decision had already been decided previously,” he said in his report.
The prosecution rejects that the loan granted to Martín Gual responds only to a business that went wrong and money was lost, rather, there was a particular interest of the savings bank executives to involve the entrepreneur in this operation, to make up the real economic situation of Sa Nostra. The accusation assures that managers of this level of responsibility must be aware of the banking directive, which prohibits such risky operations, for which it accused Batle, Dolç and Oliver of not “Having met the minimum basic standards” and insisted that “this operation should never have been approved.”
He also commented in his report on the route made by the money that was loaned to Martín Gual, to finance the Son Bordoy urbanization project, since part of the loan was diverted to accounts that the businessman had in Switzerland and South America. THe also questioned that this operation, which was invested close to of 60 million euroyes, it will be done without having a official valuation of the land, nor of the goods that were bought from Martín Gual, in the form of land, which the businessman demanded to be bought in exchange for his entry into the operation. And in this sense, the prosecution maintains that the lands that were bought with money from Sa Nostra were overvalued.
The State Advocacy, as a private accusation, it also imputes a crime of misappropriation to the three former directors of Sa Nostra, as well as to the former employee of Martín Gual. The lawyer maintained that un previous concert between the executives whoand managed the savings bank with Martín Gual to lend him this money, despite the fact that the economic insolvency of their companies. “Batle and Dolç had to look after the interests of the savings bank and they did not.” The State Bar also insisted that Sa Nostra, like other banks, had to be rescued by the Frop, financed by the state, which had to inject money to avoid the bankruptcy of the financial system, and that one of the operations that required this rescue was the investment with Martín Gual. This accusation demands financial compensation from the directors of 114 million euros, much higher than the one requested by the prosecution.
For its part, Caixabanc, the last bank to have absorbed Sa Nostra, tHe is also asking for jail time for the former directors of the savings bank. His lawyer was very forceful with the accused and affirmed that this financing operation with Martín Gual he had no economic explanation, especially considering that it was carried out in the middle of the economic crisis. The accusation affirms that there was a concert between the defendants and the businessman, with the aim of “To keep hidden the deterioration of assets of Sa Nostra”. He also criticized the training of the members of the Board of directors of the savings bank, which was the last executive body in charge of approving loans. Counsel stated that it was easy for executives to influence these directors, since none of them had a academic training in economics and did not understand the scope of some complex operations, as was the loan that was granted to Martín Gual.
Finally, the lawyer from Sareb, the public company that acquired all the toxic products from Sa Nostra, including the Son Bordoy operation, also questioned the poor preparation of the counselors who approved these loans, which made it easier for executives to handle them at will so that they would support the operations that interested them. “The operations were presented, but not explained.” He questioned that there was no taking into account the report of the analysts of Sa Nostra, who advised against this operation, and the lawyer insisted that this project “I was going to explode at any moment as it was ”. The prosecution interprets that the Son Bordoy operation, in reality, was a “A rescue plan for Batle, Dolç and Oliver” and that the evidence that has been analyzed in this trial shows that “Martín Gual enjoyed a free credit bar at Sa Nostra”, that granted these loans without following a professional criterion, because millions of euros were being given to entrepreneurs who were insolvent.
Tomorrow it’s his turn to the defense attorneys, who ask for the acquittal of the accused, by holdingr that there was no crime. The former directors of Sa Nostra maintain that they are innocent and justify that this operation with Martín Gual was carried out precisely to save the savings bank from bankruptcy, and above all to avoid the loss of land that was owned by two companies that were about to enter bankruptcy. For this reason, from Sa Nostra it was promoted the change of ownership of the land and He proposed to Martín Gual that he buy them and start the urbanization project, which was approved, but has not yet started.
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