Ex-mayor held in Ronda corruption probe
Four people detained over case involving construction of supermarket on unused soccer field
The police on Tuesday raided the offices of Ronda town hall, in Andalusia, while investigating alleged crimes of corruption, bribery, falsification of documents, influence-peddling, embezzlement and money laundering. Four people were detained, among them former mayor Antonio María Marín Lara, currently of the Socialist Party (PSOE) but who has also governed with the Popular Party (PP). The other three detainees are former deputy mayor and PSOE secretary general in Ronda, Francisco Cañestro; the former public works delegate, María José Martín de Haro; and the former security delegate Rafael Lara, two of whom are connected to supermarket chain Eroski.
The building of a new Eroski on an unused soccer field is at the center of the probe. The PSOE called for the immediate expulsion of the detainees, while the serving mayor, María Paz Fernández, stressed that the current PP government in Ronda is not under investigation.
