Spanish Prime Minister’s Wife Formally Charged With Corruption

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s wife, Begoña Gómez, has been formally charged with influence peddling and bribery following a multi-year criminal investigation that has rocked Spanish politics.

Judge Juan Carlos Peinado issued the ruling on Monday, and Gómez is now set to stand trial.

The judge has charged Gómez with four counts: influence peddling, embezzlement, business corruption, and misappropriation, while dismissing a separate allegation of professional intrusion for insufficient grounds.

In his ruling, Peinado concluded that Gómez’s position as the Spanish president’s wife served “to influence” and allowed her “to access institutionally exceptional interlocutions,” and that she offered companies a competitive advantage by exploiting her proximity to the government.

The probe was opened in April 2024 to determine whether Gómez had exploited her position as Sánchez’s wife for private benefit, an accusation both she and Sánchez have consistently denied.

The initial complaints were filed by Manos Limpias, an organisation linked to far-right causes that has gained notoriety for politically motivated lawsuits, with Spanish law permitting such complaints even from parties not directly harmed.

Gómez came under scrutiny after right-wing outlets probed her ties to companies that received public funds, including Air Europa, a Spanish airline that received a €475 million pandemic bailout.

The sponsorship of the academic chair she co-directed at Madrid’s Complutense University was described by the judge as a “facade” for “concealed remuneration for future benefits” linked to the Spanish government.

The embezzlement charge centres on whether an official employed in the premier’s office, Cristina Álvarez, worked for Gómez during her past academic role at the Complutense University at the expense of her public duties.

The judge cited emails sent by Álvarez to third parties that “clearly seem to exceed her duties” and constituted “sufficient evidence,” arguing that the arrangement “could represent a diversion of public resources in favour of private interests.”

The path to Monday’s ruling has been far from straightforward. An earlier attempt by Peinado to send Gómez to trial on embezzlement charges was overturned on appeal in February 2026, with a higher court ruling that the move was “premature and lacks factual, legal and procedural grounding” and instructing the case to return to a preliminary investigation phase.

Just last week, Peinado notified the parties of a revised request to proceed with a jury trial, citing alleged embezzlement, influence peddling, and corruption, with Monday’s formal charging order following from that renewed push.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office has long requested the dismissal of the case. The Prosecutor argued there were insufficient grounds for embezzlement and found nothing suspicious about the amounts Gómez earned for her work at Complutense University, approximately €34,000 between 2012 and 2022, of which €9,131 pre-dated Sánchez’s rise to power.

Justice Minister Félix Bolaños said the investigation had “embarrassed many citizens and judges” in Spain and warned that damage to the justice system’s reputation would be lasting.

The PSOE has attributed political motivation to the judge’s actions, with both Gómez and Sánchez maintaining her innocence and characterising the proceedings as politically driven.

The charges deepen political pressure on Sánchez, whose Socialist-led minority government has been shaken by multiple corruption probes ahead of a general election next year.

His brother David Sánchez is also under investigation over claims that his government position as a regional music director was created for him, and could face trial on charges of embezzlement, influence peddling, and misuse of public funds.

If the case proceeds to trial, as now appears likely, Gómez will face a jury, as required under Spanish law for serious offences including influence peddling and embezzlement.

She is presumed innocent until proven guilty, and no trial date has been set.