Former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero has become embroiled in the growing controversy surrounding the Plus Ultra case after it was revealed that he met last December 8 with one of the three arrested in the recent operation of the Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF). The meeting, which took place in an area of El Pardo without mobile coverage and is accredited with several photographs according to El Debate, has rekindled doubts about the relationship between the former president and the airline that was rescued by the Spanish government in 2021 with an aid of 53 million euros.
Zapatero and an arrested man: an encounter that is difficult to explain
According to the information published by El Debate, Zapatero met last December 8 with Julio Martínez, one of the three people arrested in the framework of the investigation for alleged money laundering. Martínez is linked both to the airline and to the former president himself, according to the media, since two of his companies would be clients of the consulting firm of Zapatero’s daughters, What The Fav S.L..
Martínez and the other two arrested (the president of Plus Ultra, also known as Julio Martínez, and the company’s executive director, Roberto Roselli) were released this weekend with precautionary measures after their time in court. However, what is striking is the context of the meeting that Zapatero held with Martínez just three days before the arrests.
According to El Debate’s chronicle, the meeting took place in El Pardo, in Madrid, at 8:47 a.m. on December 8. Martinez arrived to the area in a green Mini Cooper and Zapatero arrived in an
For about an hour, the two walked around the place and then went to the restaurant El Torreón for breakfast for more than an hour and a half, after making sure there were no other customers and under the surveillance of the former president’s escort vehicles. El Debate also points out that these meetings between Zapatero and Martinez had been common for years, although they became less frequent when Martinez suspected that he was under investigation.
Doubts and silence surrounding the case
Although the case is still under seal and no official details about the conversations or the purpose of the meeting have yet been published, the revelation of this meeting has created a strong media and political debate. The cross-referencing of photographs, the details about the absence of mobile coverage and the escort present throughout the meeting are elements that have fueled the controversy, especially because of the temporal proximity to the arrests and searches that took place three days later.
Unofficial sources quoted by El Debate claim that at least four official vehicles were involved in the meeting and that “up to six agents” participated in the security of the former president during that morning in El Pardo.
What is the Plus Ultra case?
The Plus Ultra case was triggered as a result of a judicial investigation focused on the financial aid of 53 Million Euros which the Government granted to the airline Plus Ultra Líneas Aéreas in 2021, in the context of the covid-19 pandemic, through the Solvency Support Fund for Strategic Companies managed by SEPI. From the beginning, different political formations and organizations questioned whether the airline fulfilled the requirements for being considered strategic for the Spanish economy, pointing out its small size, scarce flight network and doubtful viability, in spite of the fact that the Government defended the rescue.
Following a complaint filed by Vox, a Madrid court opened proceedings to investigate whether there could have been a possible crime of embezzlement and prevarication in the granting of the aid. The case has suffered ups and downs; at different times it was archived or partially reopened due to procedural deadlines and judicial decisions.
Investigation for alleged money laundering
The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, in parallel, initiated an investigation to determine whether part of the funds received by Plus Ultra could have been diverted or used in alleged money laundering operations with links in Spain, France and Switzerland. This branch of the case is not exactly the same as the one that investigated the 53 million ransom in 2021 (which was filed in 2023 due to procedural deadlines), but a separate piece focused on alleged money laundering and possible tax fraud.
Within the framework of this investigation, which is still under secret, the owner and president of Plus Ultra, Julio Martínez, and the CEO of the airline, Roberto Roselli, were arrested after the search of the company’s headquarters by the Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF) of the National Police on December 11, 2025. The case is being handled by the 15th Court of Instruction of Madrid, under the jurisdiction of Judge Esperanza Collazos.
The proceedings have included the seizure of tax documentation, servers, telephones and business files, with the aim of reconstructing suspicious financial movements and proving whether part of the funds could have been used to pay loans linked to a laundering network connected to money coming from Venezuela and operations in various countries.
