A high-profile investigation continues in Spain, involving not only politicians but also their families. Judicial authorities are once again in the spotlight after it emerged that efforts to uncover new suspicious trips by Begoña Gómez, the wife of the Prime Minister, yielded no expected results. This development is significant for Spaniards, as it is directly linked to trust in the judicial system and transparency in government institutions.
According to El Pais, Judge Juan Carlos Peinado, who has been overseeing the case against Begoña Gómez since 2024, recently requested from the Ministry of the Interior all information regarding foreign trips made by Gómez and her advisor, Cristina Álvarez. He hoped to discover new facts that might shed light on possible misconduct. However, as reported by RUSSPAIN.COM, a response from the Central Operative Unit of the Guardia Civil (UCO) stated that only one flight by Gómez to the Dominican Republic was found, taken in June 2022. This trip was previously known and does not add any new details to the investigation.
Route verification
Judge Peinado requested information on possible trips to several countries, including the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, and the Russian Federation. However, according to ONIP, neither Gómez nor Álvarez visited these destinations in the past five years—the period during which such records are kept. The UCO report also notes that there were no joint trips involving both women.
The court obtained a list of 36 flights taken by Begoña Gómez, including trips to Ghana, Egypt, Italy, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Peru. However, these countries were not part of the list that interested investigators. Adviser Álvarez was only registered on flights to Mexico, Egypt, and the USA. The flight to the Dominican Republic was operated by Air Europa and, as the government recalls, was related to Gómez’s participation in the Ibero-American Congress in the summer of 2022.
Doubts and obstacles
Judge Peinado had previously insisted on obtaining the passports of Gómez and Álvarez to personally verify their travels, but both refused to provide the documents. This prompted a new request to the Interior Ministry. Investigators suspect that the adviser may have been involved in the private affairs of the prime minister’s wife; however, both women deny any embezzlement charges.
Peinado’s attempts to link Begoña Gómez to Air Europa’s support during the pandemic were also unsuccessful. The Madrid Court of Appeal repeatedly pointed out that investigators lacked sufficient grounds for such suspicions, and in February 2026, the UCO confirmed there were no new findings to continue this line of inquiry.
Context and consequences
Attention to the Begoña Gómez case remains high, as it raises issues of transparency and accountability at the highest levels of power. Spain has seen similar cases where high-profile investigations caused public outcry but resulted in few serious consequences for those involved. For instance, in Córdoba, after the railway tragedy, the court received dozens of complaints. However, the process became drawn out and questions surrounding the management of infrastructure remained unresolved — more details about this can be found in the article on the investigation into the Córdoba railway disaster.
In recent years, Spanish courts have increasingly dealt with cases involving high-ranking officials and their inner circles. Scrutiny of foreign trips, analysis of financial flows, and requests to government agencies are becoming routine. However, such investigations do not always lead to new revelations or formal charges. In these situations, the public expects courts to act with greater transparency and decisiveness to strengthen trust in the justice system.
