In October 2024, an informal meeting took place in Madrid between prosecutor Ignacio Stampa and VOX party leader Santiago Abascal. The talks were organized by well-known businessman Luis del Rivero, who invited both parties to his home. The occasion for the meeting was the ongoing conflict over Stampa’s dismissal from the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, where he had been investigating the case of former commissioner José Villarejo.
Stampa, who found himself at the center of a major scandal, saw the invitation as an attempt to restore justice after VOX initiated the process that led to his removal. In his view, it was this move that enabled the prosecution’s leadership at the time, particularly Dolores Delgado, to get rid of an inconvenient investigator. The meeting with Abascal became a kind of act of reconciliation for Stampa, though it did not fully resolve questions surrounding his professional reputation.
During the conversation, participants said they discussed not only past disagreements but also the role of del Rivero, who had previously been involved in the Villarejo case investigation himself. The businessman supported the prosecutor after the release of his podcast and book, where Stampa spoke in detail about his fight to restore his good name. It was del Rivero who suggested that Stampa first meet with Abascal, and then with representatives of the so-called “shadow structures” within one of the country’s major political forces.
Behind the scenes of high-profile cases
During his testimony before the Madrid court, Stampa confirmed that he agreed to meet with Abascal after del Rivero kept his promise and arranged personal contact. He was later offered a meeting with Leire Díaz, who is involved in several criminal cases, as well as her partner Javier Pérez Dolset. The prosecutor admitted that he feared possible provocations, so he decided to record the conversation on a voice recorder.
At that time, the legal proceedings over his dismissal were still ongoing. Only several months later did the Supreme Court rule that the Prosecutor’s Office dragged out the disciplinary case against Stampa without sufficient grounds, and ordered the state to compensate him. However, at the time of his meeting with Abascal, the court’s decision had not yet come into force.
Consequences for all parties
Relations between Stampa and VOX had been strained since 2020, when the party accused the prosecutor of leaking information to benefit another political group. The investigation against him was eventually dropped, and the VOX leader admitted during the meeting that the party had made a mistake. Nevertheless, this episode was one of the reasons why Stampa ended up outside the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.
Luis del Rivero, the former head of construction company Sacyr, made no secret of his support for VOX and had attended party events on several occasions. His role as a mediator in the negotiations between Stampa and politicians proved crucial: it was he who convinced both sides to sit down at the table and try to reach a compromise.
New details and outlook
Ignacio Stampa now works at the Madrid prosecutor’s office and continues to defend his position in court. His story has become an example of how internal conflicts and political intrigues can impact even the most experienced investigators’ careers. New hearings are expected soon in cases involving Leire Díez and Javier Pérez Dolset, where Stampa’s testimony could play a key role.
While VOX prefers not to comment on the details of the meeting, the prosecutor himself remains focused on his work and defending his professional reputation. The circumstances surrounding his dismissal and subsequent negotiations remain among the most discussed topics in Spain’s legal and political circles.
