A CONTROVERSIAL far-right influencer has ignited a political storm after he filmed himself harassing the wife of Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez outside a Madrid café.
Footage uploaded to social media by Vito Quiles, 26, shows him approaching Begoña Gomez and her friends as she attempts to leave the establishment, bombarding her with questions while pursuing her down the street.
Tensions flared moments later when, as Gomez hurried along the pavement while on the phone, a woman accompanying her lost her temper and grappled with the activist, shouting: “Turn that s*** off!”
The political firebrand, who has repeatedly been accused of spreading fake news, was confronting Gomez over allegations she leveraged her position as Sanchez’s wife to secure a role at Madrid’s prestigious Complutense University of Madrid.
The allegations led to Judge Juan Carlos Peinado last week charging Gomez with influence peddling, corruption in business, embezzlement of public funds and misappropriation. If convicted, she could face up to 24 years in prison.
Early in the video, Quiles can be heard asking Gomez for comment on the charges as one of her friends pushes his phone aside.
Then, as Gomez hurries away, Quiles follows down the pavement, continuing to press his questions – with her companions eventually stepping in and wrestling him to a halt.
The influencer has claimed he was ‘assaulted’ in the incident.
However, according to witness accounts, Quiles edited out a key moment in which he allegedly physically prevented the PM’s wife from leaving the café – prompting Gomez to later announce she would sue him for assault over the incident.
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