The mayor of Alcorcón, Natalia de Andrés, in her office during an interview in May 2020.ADOLFO BARROSO
The mayor of Alcorcón, the socialist Natalia de Andrés, has been sentenced this Tuesday to five years of disqualification from directing companies. The head of the Mercantile Court number 6 of Madrid, the magistrate Francisco Javier Vaquer Martín, has ruled that there was mismanagement in the Municipal Real Estate Management Company of Alcorcón (Emgiasa, dependent on the Alcorcon City Council), which caused it to enter into bankruptcy. Eight other directors of this entity, including the former mayor Enrique Cascallana with 10 years of disqualification, have also been sentenced. The councilor has told EL PAÍS that she will appeal the ruling, since all decisions were made with the mandatory technical reports and current legislation was strictly complied with.
The creditors contest began almost 10 years ago, with the victory of the PP in Alcorcón and of David Pérez - the current Minister of Transport - to the mayor's office. The popular ones then encrypted Emgiasa's liabilities at around 330 million euros, for which they voluntarily requested the contest. The main creditor was the City Council, which had allocated the capital gains from the sale of flats, parking spaces and commercial premises to the construction of the macro-project of the Center for the Creation of the Arts of Alcorcón (CREAA).
The judgment of the Mercantile Court, which consists of 58 pages, states that the distribution of 16.1 million profits to the City Council was inadequate, as well as the transfer of another 19.4 million from a voluntary reserve item.
And that, despite the fact that the nine members of the board of directors had to pay the 114 million for the Creaa works.
Emgiasa also did not reflect in her accounts that there were sentences that sentenced her to pay higher amounts for the expropriations of the Ensache Sur neighborhood (where 7,000 social homes were built).
A ruling by the Superior Court of Justice of Madrid forced the return of the profits, with interest included ―about 20 million euros in total, by the Consistory to the public company―.
Another point that the ruling also reflects is that Emgiasa contracted with Gesmansur, despite not having a valid contract.
The administrative procedures included in the legislation on contracting were dispensed with.
There was, according to the prosecution, a surcharge in billing with this company of 1.5 million.
The Public Ministry in fact requested that the contest be declared guilty and that "the sanctions and civil responsibility" be determined, based on the facts and allegations that appear in its opinion.
He spoke of "negligent" management and "willful misconduct" that triggered "the insolvency situation."
The ruling of the Mercantile Court also condemns the then director of Heritage and Contracting of the City Council, José Jiménez Nistal, to three years of disqualification from directing companies;
the former Councilor for Security, Salomón Matías Matías;
to the former mayor of Health and Consumption, Tatiana Ercolanese Muñoz, and to the socialist councilors Manuel Lumbreras, Francisco Siles Tello and Antonio Elviro Arroyo, together with the mayor of IU Adela Otero Juidiaz.
The legal advice of the City Council of Alcorcón has issued a report in which it is reflected that the sentence does not affect Natalia de Andrés as mayor.
On the one hand, it is not a sentence since it is possible to appeal against it.
In fact, the councilor herself has already announced that she will appeal the ruling, understanding that there was maximum transparency in her management.
On the other hand, the sentence only restricts his participation in the direction and management of commercial companies ―private activity―, so it does not refer at any time to his political activity ―typical of public law―, according to said report to which he has had access THE COUNTRY.
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