Police report shows Popular Party officials taking Gürtel payouts

The first campaign in which Mariano Rajoy ran for La Moncloa cost his Popular Party (PP) more money than necessary. A police report released by Interviú magazine shows that high-ranking party officials paid the Gürtel network - a corrupt bribes-for-contracts ring - tens of thousands of euros that came out of the fund to pay for Rajoy's campaign.

Between 2003 and 2004, according to police files, the business ring led by Francisco Correa helped organize campaign events for local, regional and general elections that were held those years. The conservative PP signed a contract with the Gürtel ring's real estate company, Realgreen, for strategic advertising and promotional planning services in connection with the election drive.

"The profits obtained from the regional, municipal and local elections were divided in two equal shares," reads the report. "One for McCann Erickson [the firm in charge of campaign creativity] and one for Realgreen. The profit that went to Realgreen [which charged the PP overthree million eurosbetween 2003 and 2004) was again divided in two equal shares. One went to Spinaker 2000 SL and was finally distributed equally into six parts that went out to PAC, LB, GG, JS, JM and PC."

Mystery figure

The report identifies five of the six sets of initials, but not the sixth, PAC, which investigators believe belongs to a particularly highly placed individual. "The person hiding behind the initials PAC is highly important, as he/she earned a share from Realgreen SL's profits and also from those of Spinaker 2000 SL."

The legal investigation shows that each of these six people received at least 13,927 euros. The identified individuals, all of whom were already under investigation for other Gürtel-related causes, are former PP treasurer Luis Bárcenas (LB), ex-eurodeputy Gerardo Galeote (GG), former Pozuelo mayor Jesús Sepúlveda (JS), and former member of Congress Jesús Merino (JM). The ringleader, Francisco (Paco for short) Correa, showed up as PC.

All of these PP officials have since resigned or been removed from their posts.

The relationship between Correa's firms and the main opposition party, which is widely documented, got weaker when former Prime Minister José María Aznar said in late 2003 that he would not run for reelection and appointed Rajoy as his successor at the helm of the PP.