The director of the Canary Housing Institute (Icavi), Antonio Ortega, has submitted his resignation after learning of the judicial order that decrees his prosecution for an alleged crime against sexual freedom, as confirmed by the Minister of Public Works and Housing, Pablo Rodríguez, on the program Buenos Días Lanzarote of Radio Lanzarote-Onda Cero.
Rodríguez has explained that the decision comes after he received the resolution this week and forwarded it to both the minister of the area and the President of the Canary Islands Government, with the aim of focusing on his defense and not interfering with governmental activity. The minister also wanted to publicly thank Antonio Ortega for his work at the head of ICAVI.
The resignation will be taken into consideration at the Canary Islands Governing Council scheduled for next Monday the 23rd, as has been reported.
The magistrate Tomás Martín, head of Investigating Court number 3 of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, issued on February 6 the order by which the investigation is considered concluded and Ortega, former mayor of San Mateo, is processed, leaving the case one step away from the opening of oral trial. The resolution, first reported by the digital newspaper Canarias Ahora, has been appealed by the defense.
In the same ruling, the judge sets a bail of 125,000 euros to cover a possible compensation to the complainant. The case began in 2022 following the complaint filed by a young woman who was 24 years old at the time of the events. According to her testimony, in 2017 she allegedly suffered unwanted touching in the office of the then mayor. The complainant stated that she tried to move away on several occasions and that she was only able to leave the premises when Ortega's youngest son entered the room. Days later, always according to the investigation, the former mayor approached her again at her workplace, which increased her fear.
The procedure now enters the intermediate phase, in which the prosecution may request the opening of a trial, while the defense may request the dismissal of the case. Ortega, who was appointed a high-ranking official of the regional Executive in 2023 when he was already listed as investigated, has denied the facts in previous statements.
Advance, Pending Expansion