Wife of Spain's Prime Minister to stand trial on corruption charges

The wife of Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez must stand trial on corruption charges and has been banned from leaving the country, a judge has ruled. 

Begoña Gómez is under investigation over allegations she used her position as the Prime Minister's wife to secure work contracts. She denies any wrongdoing. The case was brought by far-right groups.

Judge Juan Carlos Peinado ordered Gomez to surrender her passport, barred her from leaving Spain and required her to report to court twice a month.

The case is one of several corruption probes nearing or already at trial that are weighing on Sanchez, one of Europe's few remaining leftist leaders. He has not been named in any of the cases and has said they are part of a campaign to remove him from office.

• World Cup: Ivory Coast stun Ecuador as Spain are held by Cape Verde
• Spain receives 900,000 applications under migrant scheme
• 1,317 migrants dead or missing on routes to Spain in first five months of 2026

Sanchez’s Socialist party (PSOE) issued a statement on X saying that Gómez was “innocent,” and dismissed the development as another step in “judicial and political persecution” she had experienced for two years.

Several close allies, including Santos Cerdán, the PSOE’s chief operating officer between 2021 and 2025, and former Transport Minister José Luis Ábalos are under investigation in cases involving alleged kickbacks linked to public works, oil and gas contracts.

The alleged scandal began as an investigation into the irregular procurement of masks during the Covid-19 pandemic. All deny any wrongdoing.

Copied