Víctor de Aldama, a businessman previously convicted in the mask procurement scandal, has again appeared for a confidential hearing before the National Court in Madrid. The latest testimony was given behind closed doors as part of an ongoing investigation into suspected irregularities in cash reimbursements and alleged financing linked to the PSOE. Judge Ismael Moreno, overseeing the so-called “caso Koldo,” is examining allegations involving former Transport Minister José Luis Ábalos and his former aide, Koldo García. The proceedings remain under judicial secrecy, and the allegations have not been established as findings of the court.
Information from reporting by El Mundo, Aldama has made two statements in a reserved branch of the proceedings. He repeated claims that Ábalos and García asked him to identify construction companies they trusted, which could then benefit from manipulated public tenders in exchange for commissions. The alleged payment network is said to involve €1.8 million, purportedly channelled between 2019 and 2020. The material reportedly includes references to construction companies such as Levantina, along with handwritten lists of contract awards that Aldama attributed to García. The sum and alleged mechanism come from Aldama’s account, not a judicially established finding.
Earlier, Aldama handed Judge Moreno a sealed envelope marked with the initials of PDVSA, Venezuela’s state oil company. The envelope became a focus of the inquiry after Aldama linked it to alleged illegal financing of the PSOE and the Socialist International. He claimed on television that Delcy Rodríguez, described in the article’s account as Venezuela’s acting president, gave it to him while she was vice president. Rodríguez has denied the allegations, demanded a retraction and threatened legal action against Aldama.
In a separate proceeding last January, Aldama was questioned by prosecutor Luis Pastor about the envelope’s contents at a hearing led by Judge Santiago Pedraz. Pedraz later forwarded a copy of Aldama’s statement to Moreno. Investigators reportedly obtained a photograph of the envelope, marked “confidencial,” with Manuel Quevedo Fernández, then president of PDVSA, named on it and Rodríguez listed as recipient. The transfer brought material from separate proceedings into the broader investigation, but did not determine its evidentiary value.
The inquiry has also expanded to alleged oil transactions involving Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. Reports say investigators are examining a contract between Apamate, associated with Venezuelan businessman Francisco Flores, and Deluxe Fortune, associated with Aldama, as a possible route for moving money connected to crude-oil transactions into Spain. Aldama has alleged that funds were withdrawn in cash and delivered to Ábalos and García for party-financing purposes. Separate reporting describes alleged communications between Aldama and Rodríguez about PDVSA oil transactions, including crude purchases for resale to refineries in Europe and Asia. Messages were reportedly exchanged through the encrypted application Threema. These remain allegations: Ábalos and García have denied Aldama’s claims, and Rodríguez has also rejected allegations attributed to her.
Reporting has described the Guardia Civil’s Central Operative Unit (UCO) as examining PSOE accounting records for missing invoices and discrepancies while tracing the alleged financing route. Its reported lines of inquiry include domestic tender-related payments and a separate Venezuela-linked oil channel. The material under examination spans contract-award lists and accounting records, as well as encrypted messages and the Apamate-Deluxe Fortune agreement. Aldama has separately been reported to claim that at least €300,000 was delivered to Ábalos and García in January 2019; the named parties deny the allegations. The investigation is ongoing, and no final judicial determination has found that the PSOE received illegal financing.
The “caso Koldo” has drawn attention to financial oversight within Spanish political parties. The investigation into cash reimbursements and possible illegal funding channels has implicated high-profile figures and raised questions about internal controls. Similar judicial probes have recently made headlines, including the case involving María Jesús Montero and the SEPI scandal, which also highlighted the challenges of maintaining transparency in party finances. For more on the political fallout from related cases, see this report on María Jesús Montero's response to the widening Leire case investigation.
Spain’s National Court continues to address allegations of corruption and financial misconduct involving public officials and political financing. The investigation’s outcome could affect party funding oversight and public accountability. The case remains under seal, and developments in the coming months are expected to influence the political debate.
