Judge investigating Barcelona corruption case sees alternative case dropped due to legal fraud

Judge Joaquin Aguirre, overseeing Barcelona's corruption investigation involving payments to former CTA Vice-President Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, is now facing accusations of legal fraud in the Operation Volhov case.

The investigation, which aimed to try pro-independence Catalan politicians, including former President Carles Puigdemont, on terrorism charges, was dropped after Aguirre was accused of manipulating the legal process.

A court ruling accused him of ignoring legal guidelines and allowing personal opinions to influence the case.

While this does not imply misconduct in the Negreira case, Barcelona is still under investigation for corruption and bribery related to payments exceeding €8 million to Negreira, though proving bribery is unlikely without proof that he was a public official.