Kimberley Mannion
THE Cursach corruption case has been suspended and is at risk of being annulled.
The case, which started on June 13 at the Provincial Court of Palma and was predicted to last up to 10 months, making it the longest trial in Balearic island history, has been dragging on since he was first arrested in 2017.
The case centres around the nightlife tycoon who went on to be the main investor in Mallorca Football Club, Bartolome Cursach, and his alleged ‘collusion’ with local police and polititians for the benefit of his business interests.
Along with Cursach, the trial has been investigating 22 others including 14 police officers, two officials and one other official accused of a range of crimes from belonging to a criminal organisation, prevarication and threats.
A series of acquittals on the opening day of the trial brought this number down to 17. Private prosecutions were dropped against six of the accused, including the director of Tito’s nightclub and a former director-general of tourism at the Balearic tourism ministry, Pilar Carbonell.
The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor believes the rights of those being investigated were violated, although he does not consider it enough to annul the whole case.
The defence has been calling for annulment since the trial started, mainly due to Judge Manuel Penalva and Prosecutor Subiran being accused of breaking the law during investigations, as well as vagueness in what exactly Cursach is being accused of.
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