Former tourism minister receives six month sentence

The former Balearic minister for tourism, Francesc Buils, and Miguel Angel Bonet, the ex-head of legal services at Ibatur (the old tourism agency), have accepted prison sentences of six months in respect of the so-called “caso Bitácora”: they had faced the possibility of nine years.
The case initially concerned the diversion of almost one million euros of public funds to the company Bitácora, the administrator of which was Maria Magdalena Estarellas, Bonet’s girlfriend.
 This sum was reduced considerably - to just under 40,000 euros - the prosecution having accepted that Bitácora did, for the most part, perform work for what it was paid.
The charges against the accused were, accordingly, revised: one of embezzlement was dropped.
 Nevertheless, there were still charges of abuse of public office and fraud, for which Buils was considered to have been the main perpertator and Bonet the one who had persuaded Buils to sign an illegal agreement.
Buils, who was sentenced in 2012 to three years imprisonment as a result of a different corruption case that involved the tourism ministry - the “caso Voltor” - has accepted the new sentence and his disqualification from public office for a total of nine years.
 Bonet, in also accepting the sentence, was condemned to ten years disqualification and to the payment of a fine of 1,800 euros. Maria Magdalena Estarellas and two others were also given six month sentences, though these can substituted by the payment of fines of 3,600 euros. Two more accused accepted four month sentences or a fine of 2,400 euros.