Defence lawyers acting for Pilar Bonet, who resigned as the Council of Mallorca's councillor for finance and public function in February last year, are understood to be finalising negotiations for her trial for embezzlement.
She is accused of having embezzled almost 2.2 million euros from her former employer, the Llucmajor-based Globalia, owners of Air Europa; she worked for the Groundforce airport handling division. The prosecution suspects the sum is higher, but the embezzlement was over many years and tracing bank records is extremely complex.
The negotiations are understood to be an acceptance of a prison term but at third degree level, which would mean only being in prison overnight. They also entail her not having to repay the money that was embezzled. This was between November 1997 and June 2023, when she became a councillor at the Council of Mallorca. For the four years from 2019 to 2023 she was part-time, combining her job with Globalia with being a councillor at Llucmajor Town Hall. She has no property assets in her name, so there is nothing to be seized.
The defence argues that she suffers from a serious personality disorder that led her to make compulsive purchases. Many of the items purchased were given away or she never even opened packages of products bought online.
She created a network of thirteen accounts to divert Globalia funds without raising suspicions. An audit finally uncovered the embezzlement. She is currently being treated by Projecte Home, a charity for helping people with addictions, to overcome her addiction to compulsive shopping. Bonet will have to formally appear in court when a trial date is set.