this file photo taken on March 16, 2018 Spain’s Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Bank president Francisco Gonzalez speaks before the start of the bank’s general shareholders meeting in Bilbao, north of Spain. — AFP pic
Government ministers and the royal family have been embarrassed in recent years by covert recordings made by retired police chief Jose Manuel Villarejo, who is now behind bars awaiting trial over decades of alleged dirty work for firms or rich individuals. Gonzalez, who retired late last year and also stepped down as the bank’s honorary chairman in March, is one of 10 BBVA officials under investigation as part of the probe.Accused of corruption and unlawful disclosure of secrets, Gonzalez testified Monday at a Madrid court as part of the probe, later telling reporters that the bank and its management had always acted with “integrity”.
Following an internal inquiry, Iberdrola in October acknowledged that between 2004 and 2017, it had on 17 different occasions used the services of Cenyt, a business company run by Villarejo that in theory carried out market studies.“The scope of Villarejo’s spying, which touched as much on the business world as on politics..