A separate sealed strand of the Koldo case examines suspected manipulation of public-works and railway-infrastructure contracts awarded during José Luis Ábalos’s tenure as transport minister. The inquiry forms part of preliminary proceedings 65/2023, branch eight, which concerns public-works contracts. National Court judge Ismael Moreno opened a separate proceeding after receiving UCO Economic Crime Unit report 168/26, dated 3 November 2026, and authorised searches and other investigative measures.
The Guardia Civil’s Central Operative Unit (UCO) arrested Andrea de la Torre, Ábalos’s partner, at his Valencia home, where she had lived since the former minister entered prison. Officers also detained Cristian Corvillo, described as a former driver of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. Six people have been arrested in total, including Corvillo’s brother Rubén and three businesspeople, according to ABC, citing legal sources. The operation took place across Madrid, Córdoba, Valencia and Seville.
The investigation concerns suspected rigging of public-works and railway-infrastructure tenders, as well as possible illegal commissions linked to awards dependent on the Transport Ministry. The public-works strand is separate from the mask-contract proceedings in the wider Koldo case; the contracts now under examination were not adjudicated in that strand. The judge is investigating alleged offences involving a criminal organisation. The case also includes suspected influence peddling and money laundering; none of these allegations is a finding of guilt.
Investigators searched Ábalos’s home and Corvillo’s residence in Córdoba, and searched the premises of Deplan-Works in Seville. In Madrid, they requested information from Adif and Adif Alta Velocidad at their offices on Paseo de la Castellana. Officers also entered premises linked to construction company Azvi, which had employed Koldo García for several months after Ábalos left the ministry. The reported judicial requests and searches extended the operation to rail and public-infrastructure entities as well as private residences.
The inquiry’s public-works strand was separated from the wider case in September 2025 by the Supreme Court judge then handling the proceedings. Moreno later took over the investigation when the case moved to the National Court. The current operation is part of a sealed section of the case, carried out under Moreno’s orders with the involvement of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.
ABC reported that Moreno had asked investigators for copies of mobile and electronic devices seized from Koldo García and Daniel Sierra Monedero, the sole director and attorney-in-fact of Soluciones de Gestión. The judge also requested evidence seized from Juan Carlos Cueto, described as the alleged mastermind of the mask-contract case, and Iñigo Rotaeche, a former administrator of Soluciones de Gestión. A related judicial measure ordered the UCO to copy García’s mobile phone and examine the seized materials. Investigators collected the devices and other evidence in connection with the wider investigation. They are now examining its contents in the public-works strand.
The UCO searched Ábalos’s Valencia flat in June 2025, when he was still at liberty. The search lasted about ten hours. Investigators seized a hard drive after a woman at the property tried to conceal it beneath her clothing, along with other digital evidence.
As of 5 November 2026, the six detainees were being held for questioning while searches and document-gathering continued. The investigation is ongoing, and the proceedings do not establish guilt.
