The Provincial Court of Las Palmas has already ordered the imprisonment of the former mayor of Yaiza, José Francisco Reyes, to serve the sentence in the Yate case, in which he accepted 6 years in prison after confessing that he granted dozens of illegal licenses in Playa Blanca in exchange for bribes. In an order dated March 22, the Second Section of the Court confirms the firmness of the ruling, issued in April 2017, and orders several procedures to comply with the penalties imposed on the nine defendants in the case.
Regarding Reyes, it orders that "he be required to voluntarily enter prison within one business day, to serve the custodial sentence imposed." In addition, it warns that "if he does not do so, he will be arrested and imprisoned by the state security forces."
However, the order also indicates that the former mayor has submitted a document requesting that the execution of the sentence be suspended, so the Court is also asking that this document be forwarded to both the Public Prosecutor's Office and the private prosecution, so that they can issue a report and rule on the advisability of upholding that request.
The final decision is in the hands of the Court
As for the other eight defendants, including Reyes' wife and three children and the former secretary of the City Council, Vicente Bartolomé Fuentes, all have sentences of less than two years in prison, so in principle they could opt for that suspension of the sentence, avoiding imprisonment. In any case, the decision is always in the hands of the court, which in this case has also requested reports from the Prosecutor's Office and the private prosecution to know their opinion.
After Reyes', the second highest penalty was imposed on Vicente Bartolomé Fuentes, who in the trial confessed to having committed a crime of malfeasance by reporting in favor of the Playa Blanca Partial Plan and the Marina Rubicón marina, since he was aware that they were illegal. And he also acknowledged having contributed to the embezzlement of public funds from the City Council, by having allowed private trips of the former mayor to be paid with money from the Yaiza City Council. In total, the former secretary accepted a sentence of one year in prison and more than 10 years of disqualification, as well as the payment of a fine of 720 euros. Now, he has already submitted a document requesting that his entry into prison be suspended.
As for the rest, Reyes' wife and three children accepted a sentence of 5 and a half months in prison for a crime of money laundering, and similar sentences -of between 5 months and 5 and a half months- were imposed on the other three confessed defendants, Benito Mesa Ferrer, Simeón Camacho and Antonio Marcelo Machín, who through shell companies also helped the former mayor to launder the money from the bribes he received.
They are all now awaiting the report from the Public Prosecutor's Office and the private prosecution, so that the Court can decide whether or not to suspend their entry into prison. And it is that although the law allows not to serve sentences of less than two years in prison when there are no criminal records, the last word always lies with the court that issued the sentence, after hearing the criteria of the accusations depending on each case.
Confiscation of a home, El Pachi and five vehicles
What the Court does order to be complied with now is the economic part of the sentence, demanding that all those convicted pay the fines. In most cases, they already paid all or a significant part even before the trial, when reaching the agreement of conformity with the Prosecutor's Office, which allowed them to reduce the penalties.
In the case of Reyes, before the trial he deposited more than 300,000 euros to pay his fine and those of his wife and children. As for Ferrer, Camacho and Marcelo Machín, they were imposed fines of 71,920, 20,000 and 20,000 euros and before the trial they deposited a part.
In addition, the judgment ordered the confiscation of several assets that were seized after the arrests and searches carried out within this case in 2009. Thus, the Court's order also establishes that a home of the Reyes family in La Laguna, with its corresponding parking space, be made available to the Asset Recovery and Management Office of Madrid. And the same orders with other assets that were seized, among which are the El Pachi boat, five vehicles -two Toyotas, a Mercedes, a Saab and a Renault Kangoo-, nautical material, a spa and a pergola, all acquired with black money from the bribes that the former mayor admitted to receiving for granting illegal licenses.
In addition, the money that was seized in ten current accounts and the 13,000 euros that were found in cash in Reyes' house during the search will also be made available to this body.
