Jury in Camps' trial will hear phone-tap tapes once more

The defense in the Francisco Camps' bribery trial asked the judge on Tuesday not to play again any of the surveillance recordings of conversations between the defendant and members of the Gürtel conspiracy before the jury begins its deliberations.

The trial has entered its documentary phase with prosecutors presenting contracts and letters as well as the phone taps in Valencia High Court.

A Socialist lawyer representing the people's charges against the former Valencia regional premier wanted the jury to hear all the recorded conversations, including the ones played in open court at the beginning of the trial last month. Camps and former Valencia Popular Party (PP) secretary general Ricardo Costa are on trial for accepting suits and other gifts from corrupt businessmen who formed the so-called Gürtel network.

But Judge Juan Climent denied the defense's petition and has decided that the jury will hear the conversations.

Camps, who has displayed an indignant attitude throughout the trial, was scolded and warned by Climent on a number of occasions for losing his composure and making snide remarks. On Monday the former Valencia region chief turned to one of his supporters in the public gallery and called a police officer who was testifying "a Marxist."

"This is the Stasi," he said, referring to the secret police in the former German Democratic Republic. The judge didn't hear him.

Two police officers testified that when the Gürtel ringleaders got wind that the tailor José Tomás García was going to testify before anti-corruption prosecutors, they became very nervous.

"From that moment on, a series of telephone calls were made between the leaders of the organization - Pablo Crespo, Álvaro Pérez, Francisco Correa and others - along with two lawyers from Madrid, Pedro García and another man," said one agent, explaining that they wanted to know what Tomás was going to say, the witness said.

Tomás testified earlier in the trial that Camps never paid for any of the dress suits that were purchased for him by Pérez, the owner of a special events firm called Orange Market. The suits were purchased from two Madrid menswear stores, Milano and Forever Young, and given to Camps. Costa also received jackets and other dress accessories.

Gürtel ringleader Correa suspected that Tomás had been the person who first tipped off police with his statements taken on January 20, 2009.