The Unidad Central Operativa (UCO) has placed former PSOE Organization Secretary Santos Cerdán at the center of an investigation into alleged criminal activity within the party. Investigators say Cerdán enabled a criminal organization to operate using PSOE resources, including offices and staff, with logistical support as well, information from a confidential report accessed by laSexta. The report draws on data from the mobile phones of five suspects, including former Correos president Juan Manuel Serrano, who was formally placed under investigation on 10 July 2026, Spanish media reports say.
The investigation reportedly has two strands: alleged efforts to obstruct cases affecting PSOE interests and suspected irregularities involving public contracts. Serrano’s mobile phone remains under examination after Anticorruption prosecutors opposed returning it, citing indications linking him to both strands. His defense has referred to the SEPI-related strand as the “rama SEPI.” These are investigative allegations, not findings of criminal liability.
The report says Ana María Fuentes, acting under Cerdán’s direction, falsified professional engagement documents to simulate legal relationships and authorize payments to lawyers. The documents, linked to the law firm ESTUDIO JURÍDICO I. OLIVER & PARTNERS SL and attorney Jacobo Teijelo, were allegedly created solely to justify financial transfers from the party to the lawyers involved. UCO’s analysis suggests the contracts covered the real purpose of the payments.
The investigation also identifies Covadonga San Pedro and Celia Rodríguez, both from PSOE’s secretariat and administration, as basic figures in managing the operation’s logistics. They arranged travel, including transportation, and supported meetings for members of the alleged network; the party reportedly covered all related expenses. UCO considers their participation impressive to facilitating the activities under scrutiny.
UCO is using phone data to clarify the full extent of the costs assumed by PSOE and identify everyone involved. Investigators are also working to determine how much staff knew about the nature of their assignments. Many relevant actions were coordinated via mobile devices. Separately, a UCO document cited in Spanish reporting described Leire Díez’s hiring at Correos as apparently handled through Serrano, then the company’s president; it referred to a May 2021 conversation in which Vicente Fernández and Serrano allegedly discussed the placement. That account does not itself establish that the appointment was unlawful.
The wider inquiry also examines alleged financial links involving Servinabar 2000. Acciona reportedly acknowledged before investigating judge Ismael Moreno that Servinabar issued invoices totaling €1,957,000, including VAT, to the joint venture building the Logroño bypass. Investigators had also located a private 2016 contract concerning Cerdán’s acquisition of a 45% stake in Servinabar. A separate reported UCO estimate valued alleged benefits to Cerdán and relatives at no less than €323,178.41 between 2015 and 2024, including expenses and services said to have been paid directly or indirectly with company funds. The invoice total and investigative estimate are not judicial findings that the payments were illegal.
Procedural disputes are unfolding alongside the inquiry. National Court judge Santiago Pedraz ordered material seized from Cerdán’s home to be copied and made available to Moreno for the separate caso Koldo investigation. The material includes electronic devices and documents, along with agendas. Cerdán’s defense appealed, arguing that the order did not specify the evidentiary connection between the seized material and Moreno’s case. The transfer concerns investigative material and does not determine criminal liability. His lawyers have also described the investigation as a “causa general.”
The case adds to a series of recent scandals involving senior PSOE figures and the management of public resources. The ongoing SEPI investigation, for example, has already prompted María Jesús Montero to publicly distance herself from Vicente Fernández, as detailed in recent coverage of the Leire case probe. The latest UCO findings have intensified scrutiny of the party’s internal controls and the potential misuse of its infrastructure for unauthorized activities.
In Spain, the Unidad Central Operativa is a specialized division of the Guardia Civil tasked with investigating complex organized crime and corruption cases. Its reports can inform judicial investigations, but the allegations described in this case remain unresolved. The involvement of high-ranking party officials and the alleged use of party resources for non-official purposes raise questions about oversight and accountability within major political organizations. As the investigation continues, further details may emerge about the alleged network’s scope and the methods investigators say were used to conceal its operations.
