Key facts
- Begoña Gómez, wife of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, must stand trial on corruption charges.
- An investigating judge ordered Gómez to surrender her passport and barred her from leaving Spain.
- Gómez is required to report to court twice a month.
- The investigation concerns allegations that Gómez used her position to secure work contracts.
- Gómez denies any wrongdoing.
Begoña Gómez, the wife of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, has been ordered to stand trial on corruption charges, with a judge also banning her from leaving the country. The case, brought by far-right groups, centers on allegations that Gómez used her position as the prime minister's wife to secure work contracts. She denies any wrongdoing.
Investigating judge Juan Carlos Peinado ruled that Gómez must surrender her passport and report to court twice a month. This case is among several corruption probes that are impacting Sánchez's government. The Prime Minister himself has not been named in any of the cases and has suggested they are part of a campaign to remove him from office.
Several close associates of Sánchez, including the Socialist party's third-highest-ranking official and his former transport minister, are also under investigation for alleged kickbacks related to public works, oil and gas contracts, and the procurement of masks during the pandemic. These individuals also deny any wrongdoing.