The Public Prosecutor’s Office places the former socialist deputy as the leader of the purported corrupt scheme, asserting that without his involvement “it would not have thrived.”
SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, APR. (Press Europa) –
The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office has sought a prison sentence of one year and the initiation of an oral trial for the former national deputy, Juan Bernardo Fuentes Curbelo, known as ‘Tito Berni’, due to an alleged bribery offence in one of the separate components of the ‘Mediator Case’.
The report, submitted to Court of Instruction number 4 and accessed by Europa Press, also requests disqualification from holding any public position while serving the sentence, in addition to a three-year suspension from public office.
In the case of the mediator, Marco Antonio Navarro Tacoronte, the Prosecutor’s Office is calling for a four-year prison sentence for the alleged crimes of fraud and bribery, alongside a three-year disqualification from public office.
Additionally, businessman Antonio Bautista is being asked to serve one year in prison for an alleged bribery offence, and Taishet Fuentes, nephew of ‘Tito Berni’ and former General Director of Livestock for the Canary Islands government, faces four years for fraud and bribery, alongside a three-year disqualification from public office.
The events trace back to late August 2020 when Bautista made contact with Navarro Tacoronte, “who presented himself as a person deeply embedded in the Canary Islands government with significant and notable connections in both the business and public sectors of the archipelago,” in order to introduce his photovoltaic energy enterprise to the islands.
He thus proposed to the businessman to engage with the ZEC (Canarian Special Zone) to benefit from fiscal advantages “in return for the payment of specific amounts as well as other perks and gifts,” states the Prosecutor’s Office, which has confirmed two payments of 2,000 euros each at the beginning of September that were deposited into the bank accounts of the mediator’s partner and her daughter.
According to the anti-corruption body, Navarro Tacoronte led the entrepreneurs involved to believe that “by making the requested payments and gifts, the contracts they sought would be secured through the defendants’ management.”
In this context, the pivotal role of Curbelo stands out throughout the conspiracy since without his involvement “no illicit activity would have flourished,” as he created an “image of power and credibility” among the captured entrepreneurs, “even reaching visits to the Congress of Deputies to persuade them of his influence and the reliability of their promises as well as the business proposals that were typically made by the mediator in accordance with the other accomplices.”
General Espinosa Navas, employing the same methodology
Employing a similar ‘modus operandi’, Civil Guard General Francisco Espinosa Navas orchestrated meetings with businessmen at the headquarters of the Civil Guard in Madrid.
On 23rd September 2020, another meeting was arranged, called by the mediator, during which Bautista ended up paying 25,000 euros to cover expenses of “commissions, meals, and prostitution services that other defendants required to support the businessman’s commercial claims.”
The following day, he further transferred 10,000 euros to the Tetir Sports Association, a sports club in Fuerteventura overseen by Juan Bernardo Fuentes Curbelo.
“This demand was crucial and common for all entrepreneurs wishing to utilise the defendants’ favours, particularly from the former national deputy, who understood this essential contribution was needed to leverage their influence network, a strategy they executed with at least three other entrepreneurs ensnared by the mediator,” explains the Prosecutor’s Office.
As part of the alleged scheme, Curbelo Fuentes provided Bautista with the names of livestock entrepreneurs in Fuerteventura with whom he had established relationships due to his advisory role and previous position as General Director of the Canary Islands government, facilitating access to sell photovoltaic energy products.
Taishet following his uncle’s directives
In this scenario, Taishet Fuentes became involved, as noted by the Prosecutor’s Office, receiving “appropriate guidance” from his uncle to organise visits in Fuerteventura and facilitate the businessman’s commercial aspirations.
The Prosecutor’s Office further alleged that “he identified livestock farmers facing administrative hurdles to present them alongside Marco Antonio Navarro Tacoronte, offering the latter’s services to resolve those difficulties or deficiencies in exchange for a fee, fully aware that such adjustments to administrative files were impossible.”
Thus, once Bautista was ensnared by the alleged conspiracy, various payments continued, including two of 3,000 euros each in October 2020 and the payment for a dinner in Madrid a year later.
Additionally, Taishet Fuentes received, through the mediator, 400 euros from Bautista via Bizum in December 2022.
However, Bautista managed to propose up to four photovoltaic energy projects to farmers in Fuerteventura while Navarro Tacoronte and Taishet Fuentes guaranteed to “intercede” with the Authorities “despite knowing the unlikelihood of achieving the aims they proposed, all contingent upon the monetary benefits expected from their victims’ entrepreneurs in these illicit dealings.”
“I hope not to encounter problems”
One farmer was promised a reclassification of their exploitation to make it “sustainable” in exchange for a commission, “fully aware that the legal situation of the farmer’s farm was unalterable and even that possibility exceeded their capacities,” states the Prosecutor’s Office.
An appointment was arranged at a hotel in Fuerteventura where the mediator asked the farmer for 200,000 euros, of which he only paid 6,000 euros in cash plus another 600 euros withdrawn from an ATM.
From that point on, the file was disregarded, leading the businessman to message the mediator: “Good morning, as you are aware of my situation, remember that the general director was the one who brought you to my house. I await your response. In September, I will meet with the livestock farmers to discuss this issue, as you have taken 6,000 euros from me to process a license.”
The same method was employed with another farmer, who had lost a subsidy and was asked for 30,000 euros for processing at a hotel in Fuerteventura, although he did not make any payment.
