Jacqueline Fanchini (Reporter)
A FORMER electrician charged with the theft of the priceless 12th century Codex Calixtinus travel guide is facing 15 years in jail.
It was first thought the disappearance of one of Spain’s most valuable cultural treasures was the ‘heist of the century’.
But it turned out to be an inside job by the electrician with a grudge against the Cathedral de Santiago de Compostela, in Galicia.
Jose Manuel Fernandez Castineiras was dismissed – after 25 years at the cathedral – for falsifying a work document.
His wife and son will also stand trial, accused of money-laundering and receiving stolen good.
The invaluable manuscript was finally found hidden in the Castineiras’ garage along with €2 million, about €300,000 of which it is believed he stole from the cathedral.
The electrician’s solicitors spent almost two hours arguing that all current evidence be dropped against his client claiming it was wrongly acquired or given under pressure.
This includes, a video confession, camera footage from the cathedral and wiretapped recordings from the man’s home the police would have allegedly installed beofre receiving the necessary permissions.
