The charges and the court order
A Spanish judge ordered Begoña Gómez, wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, to stand trial on corruption charges and surrender her passport on Saturday. Judge Juan Carlos Peinado issued the ruling that bans Gómez from leaving the country and requires her to appear before the court twice a month until a verdict is reached.
Peinado formally charged Gómez in April with embezzlement, influence peddling, corruption in business dealings and misappropriation of funds. The court has instructed all border posts and civilian and military airports to enforce the travel ban.
What Gómez is accused of doing
Gómez is accused of using her position as the prime minister's wife to influence government contracts given to technology companies. She also faces allegations of misusing public funds in the hiring of a consultant and the inappropriate use of software while she was a professor at a public university.
No date for the trial has been set.
Threat to the government
The case is one of several corruption affairs that have embroiled Sánchez's family and former allies, threatening to topple his minority coalition government. The Socialist leader's administration relies on a narrow parliamentary majority that could fracture if political pressure from the scandals intensifies.
The trial represents the most direct legal challenge yet to Sánchez's inner circle. Unlike previous inquiries that have surrounded the prime minister without directly naming him, this case puts his wife in the dock and forces the government to defend itself against charges of impropriety at the highest levels of power.
