Joe Duggan (Reporter)
CATALAN’S police chief is being investigated for sedition as tensions mount between separatists and the Madrid government.
Mossos head Josep Lluís Trapero could face a 15-year prison sentence after defying orders to help halt Sunday’s referendum.
Trapero and several others, including president of the Catalan National Assembly (ANC) Jordi Sánchez, will appear in court on Friday.
Sanchez said it appeared the Spanish state ‘had definitely gone mad’.
It followed a demonstration on September 20 when thousands of protesters attempted to block Guardia Civil and National Police as they arrested public officials and confiscated ballot papers.
The move shows Madrid is refusing to back down after mounting criticism of police violence which left almost 900 people injured in Catalunya on Sunday.
Mossos head Josep Lluís Trapero did exactly the prudent thing to avoid more excalation: he was peaceful and refused to participate in repression.
The usual historical strategy in Spain: dominance not dialogue.