Ex-Balearics chief won’t go to jail despite fraud conviction
Prosecutor sees no flight risk while sentence is appealed The 2-5-million-euro bail posted by Matas is considered guarantee
The state prosecutor has decided not to ask that former Balearic Islands premier, Jaume Matas, who was sentenced to six year in jail on Tuesday after being convicted on five counts of corruption, should not go immediately to jail as he did not represent a flight risk.
In a judgment released Wednesday, anti-corruption prosecutor Pedro Horrach argued that the 2-5-million-euro bail posted by Matas, the obligation to appear every 15 days and the withdrawal of his passport were sufficient measures to guarantee he would not seek to flee the country before his sentence is confirmed.
The High Court of Palma de Mallorca found Matas guilty of fraud, influence peddling, embezzlement, falsifying documents and dereliction of his public duties in connection with the so-called Palma Arena case. King Juan Carlos’ son-in-law, Iñaki Urdangarin, is also implicated in one of its tentacles.
Matas’ lawyers have said they intend to appeal to the Supreme Court. In cases of jail terms of over five years, the norm is for the state prosecutor to seek to have the sentence executed.
