The Mossos d’Esquadra are looking for documentation as part of a complaint filed by a defeated candidate
This morning, the Mossos d’Esquadra raided the headquarters of the Catalan Football Federation (FCF), located on Carrer de Sicília, in Barcelona. The Catalan police have confirmed that the offices of the FCF have been accessed, but have not given more details about the reason for their action. The proceedings are declared secret by court order. Some of the employees of the federative body have not been able to enter the premises. It is not known if there were any arrests, if a search was made or if only information was collected in connection with these proceedings.
A complaint for fraud in the FCF elections
As reported by premium.cat, this investigation, which depends on a Barcelona court, is a new case and has to do with the FCF elections, held a few months ago. The candidate Juanjo Isern filed a complaint against the current presidency of the FCF for alleged fraud in the elections of last February 2023. In those elections, the current president Joan Soteras emerged victorious, with 57% of the votes.
Isern was a loser in those elections, as he had also been in those of 2022, on May 22 of that year, and filed a complaint for alleged fraud, which after being admitted to the procedure, today has caused these proceedings that the Mossos assure that they are secret. Isern was beaten in some of the regions, but obtained more votes than Soteras in some places, such as Tarragona or Penedès. Since Isern’s candidacy it was stated, in the complaint, that irregularities had occurred in some electoral colleges in those elections.
The reaction of Joan Soteras’ team
For its part, the team of President Joan Soteras, when it became known that Isern had denounced the elections, assured that everything was part of an operation from the environment of the candidate and former president, Andreu Subies, for to be able to reach the presidency of the FCF and to be able to access documentation related to the Soule case, a case which, in the National Court, is investigating an alleged embezzlement of funds linked to the presidency of Subies. At that time, according to the first inquiries, 7.9 million euros were diverted and the former president is accused of making renovations to his home with the federation’s money. Isern’s complaint was accepted by a court in Barcelona and today it was decided to make this entry, under judicial supervision, to recover documentation. Neither police sources nor judicial sources explain whether arrests are planned and what crimes are being investigated. Isern declined, today, to make statements about this police operation.
Other FCF-related research
A few days ago, the Mossos d’Esquadra opened an investigation related to the assault on the headquarters and the theft of a safe where there was documentation of this case that allegedly involves Joan Subies. Judicial sources have explained that the entry of the Mossos is also not related to the Negreira case, of an alleged purchase of referees by FC Barcelona; in this case, the entries are made by the Civil Guard.
