The National Court ratifies the investigation on Democratic Tsunami
The National Court has confirmed the validity of the investigation into Democratic Tsunami carried out by magistrate Manuel García Castellón. In a recent resolution, the criminal division of the National Court has rejected the request of Oriol Soler and Oleguer Serra, two investigated by Tsunami, to access the origin of the investigation. This investigation, which was initiated by García-Castellón in 2018, has been considered valid by the court, even though the anonymous platform Tsunami Democràtic did not start operating until 2019. The court also accuses Soler and Serra of wanting to remove the judge of the case with the presentation of three objections.
Evidence of a crime of terrorism in the cause of the Democratic Tsunami
The criminal court of the National Court has emphasized that there are indications of a crime of terrorism in the cause of the Democratic Tsunami, which is within its jurisdiction. In addition, the instruction of the case has been confirmed by the Supreme Court. This instruction includes the part of the aphorates, such as the president-in-exile Carles Puigdemont and the ERC deputy Ruben Wagensberg, who has recently moved to Switzerland.
The criticisms of the lawyer of the investigated
The lawyer of Oriol Soler and Oleguer Serra, Benet Salellas, has accused Judge García-Castellón of creating a general case against Catalan independence. Salellas maintains that the magistrate has carried out investigations since 2018, with separate pieces, and that he should have referred the pieces to the dean’s office so they could be distributed to another court. The lawyer has also requested information from the Civil Guard about his investigations related to Catalan independence and when he provided this information to Judge García-Castellón.
The decision of the National Court
The criminal chamber of the National Court has denied access to the preliminary proceedings 104/2017 and 99/2018, which are the origin of the investigation into Democratic Tsunami, to the investigated Oriol Soler and Oleguer Serra. The court argues that it has not been specified in which aspects these proceedings affect his defense. However, those investigated already know these procedures, according to the court.
The position of the criminal court of the National Court
The criminal chamber of the National Court has reiterated that separate piece 4 of the preliminary proceedings 99/2018 had as its objective the search for Democratic Tsunami as one of the initiatives called to encourage the pro-independence movement. The court has ratified the validity of this investigation, which had already been requested by the prosecutor’s office.
The criticism of García-Castellón in the case of the CDRs of Operation Jude
The criminal court of the National Court has been critical of magistrate García-Castellón in the case of the CDRs of Operation Jude. The court has repeatedly urged the judge to provide all information to CDR’s defenses, information that has never been fully completed, according to the defenses.
