The Kitchen trial, a separate strand of the broader Tándem investigation, began on 6 April 2026 before the Fourth Criminal Section of Spain’s Audiencia Nacional in San Fernando de Henares, with about 150 witnesses expected. Prosecutors and private accusers have presented evidence about an alleged Interior Ministry operation, conducted between 2013 and 2015, to obtain sensitive information held by former Partido Popular (PP) treasurer Luis Bárcenas. The prosecution’s theory is that the operation sought material that could damage the party and its senior figures in proceedings related to the Gürtel corruption case and the PP’s parallel accounts.
The prosecution’s case centers on SMS messages and secret audio recordings, alongside police agendas and handwritten notes associated with former police commissioner José Manuel Villarejo and other officers. Prosecutors argue that the materials show political and police officials coordinating efforts to obtain documents or recordings. They also allege that Bárcenas’s former driver, Sergio Ríos, was recruited as a confidential source with access to the treasurer’s circle, and that reserved funds were used to pay him. The prosecution says Kitchen operated outside the ordinary, judicially supervised work of the Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF); the court has yet to assess the evidence and allegations.
Prosecutors say the operation ran in parallel with the formal UDEF investigation, outside its judicial chain. Villarejo’s diaries and audio files are cited in support of claims that officers sought documents and recordings that could compromise senior PP figures. The alleged network also included senior police officials Eugenio Pino, José Olivera and Andrés Gómez Gordo. The case forms part of wider proceedings examining whether police personnel and public resources were used for unofficial political purposes.
A basic question is the alleged involvement of former Interior Minister Jorge Fernández Díaz and former Secretary of State for Security Francisco Martínez. Prosecutors reportedly sought 15 years in prison for each on three alleged offences. They cite messages attributed to Fernández Díaz and sent to Martínez, along with their timing and entries in Villarejo’s agendas, as evidence that the minister was informed about and exercised control over the operation. Fernández Díaz denies knowing about Kitchen and denies authoring the messages. The court has not yet ruled on the prosecution’s allegations.
The trial has also examined alleged surveillance of Bárcenas’s wife, Rosalía Iglesias, and people around her. The original account of the proceedings says police officers confirmed monitoring operations without judicial authorization and that related documents and images were presented in court. Evidence was also presented concerning the alleged monitoring of Bárcenas in prison. These claims are part of a wider dispute over whether police activity served a legitimate investigative purpose or sought information outside the ordinary judicial process.
Beyond Kitchen, prosecutors have pointed to a separate project known as SMP, which they say was intended to identify procedural weaknesses in the Gürtel case that might undermine the investigation. Documents related to the plan, including a proposed budget of €15 million, were reportedly found in Villarejo’s possession. The SMP allegations bolster the prosecution’s broader argument that police resources may have been directed toward protecting political interests.
Former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy testified as a witness and denied knowing about the alleged operation. He also said managing reserved funds and recruiting informants were not functions of the Interior Minister. Former PP secretary-general María Dolores de Cospedal said she did not remember a conversation with Villarejo in which she asked him to stop or control documents related to Bárcenas. Their accounts differ from the prosecution’s theory about political knowledge and authorization. The court must weigh that testimony against the documentary and audio evidence.
By late June 2026, the private accusers had withdrawn their charges against former police officials José Ángel Fuentes Gago and Bonifacio Díez Sevillano after their testimony, leaving them facing acquittal. Prosecutors maintained their requests for convictions against the remaining defendants, while the defense teams sought acquittals. A separate line of inquiry into business intermediary Ignacio López del Hierro ended with the case against him dismissed. The criminal chamber upheld that decision, distinguishing his procedural position from that of the defendants standing trial.
The proceedings have renewed scrutiny of how Spain’s security institutions use police structures and reserved funds, particularly when a corruption investigation involves the governing party. The case also echoes concerns about confidential information and privacy raised after the leak of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero’s agenda and private messages, as detailed in this related report.
The Kitchen trial is scheduled to resume on July 22, when defense teams are due to present their final arguments. Its outcome will depend on whether the Audiencia Nacional finds the evidence sufficient to establish criminal responsibility. The court’s judgment will determine the legal consequences for the defendants and set out the limits on political intervention in police operations connected to judicial investigations.
