#Cordoba :Still Missing Presumed Dead Tiny Tot's José and Ruth As Three Month Anniversary Approaches

As the three-month anniversary approaches of the disappearance of the two children missing from Córdoba, Ruth and José Bretón, police started a new search on Wednesday for any sign of the young brother and sister.

They have returned to Las Quesadillas, the area in Córdoba where the children’s grandparents live, and were searching an area of waste ground near the Guadalquivir River, close to the grandparents’ finca. Police dogs were on site to help in the search, and specialist officers were brought in to inspect the sewerage system.

The children’s father, José Bretón, remains the only suspect in the case and remains in prison on remand at the Córdoba provincial jail. His estranged wife, Ruth Ortiz, visited him there last week in the hope of some clue to her children’s whereabouts, but left without any information. Her family have been in Portugal this week, putting up posters of the missing children.

A demonstration has been called in Córdoba City on Sunday to demand the brother and sister’s return, on the three-month anniversary of their disappearance.


http://www.fincaforsale.co.uk/?p=1860

#NOOS : King's Son In Law Buys Himself Some Time.

A Spanish court said Saturday it had postponed the appearance of King Juan Carlos' son-in-law Inaki Urdangarin on accusations of corruption following legal representations.

The 43-year-old ex-Olympic handball player will now have to appear on February 25 instead of February 6, the court in Palma de Mallorca said.

It said judge Jose Castro Aragon, who is in charge of the case, had received a number of requests from lawyers, including Urdangarin's own, to put off the hearing to give them time to study the file.

Thursday's announcement by the judge that he had summoned Urdangarin took the case to a new level, formally making him a suspect in a huge embarrassment for the monarchy.

Castro Aragon is investigating corruption in a non-profit organisation, Instituto Noos, formerly run by Urdangarin, who has the title Duke of Palma and is married to the king's youngest daughter, Princess Cristina.

The duke's lawyer, Mario Pascual Vives, said his client was "absolutely innocent".

A court document seen by AFP says state prosecutors are investigating suspected forgery, perversion of the course of justice, fraud and embezzlement of public funds to the tune of several million euros.

On December 12, the royal family suspended the duke from official engagements and the palace's highest official, Rafael Spottorno, gave an unprecedented rebuke, telling Spanish media his behaviour "does not seem exemplary".

http://www.france24.com/en/20111231-spain-puts-off-corruption-hearing-kings-son-law?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

#Noos : The Duke Of Palma Fraud Scandal Leads All Newspaper Headlines Today

http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publish/article_33204.shtml

#Noos: Spanish King's Son In Law Charged In Fraud Case

MADRID, Dec 29: The Spanish king`s son-in-law was charged on Thursday in a fraud and embezzlement case that has damaged the royal family, which this week took the unprecedented step of disclosing its income.

The Palma de Mallorca court did not specify the charges against Inaki Urdangarin, the Duke of Palma, a retired Olympic handball player married to King Juan Carlos`s younger daughter, Infanta Cristina.

It ordered him to testify in an investigation into alleged misuse of millions of euros in public funds at his non-profit Noos Institute, which he ran from 2004 to 2006.

Urdangarin has denied wrongdoing, but he apologised publicly this month for the embarrassment his legal problems were causing the royal family, which he said had nothing to do with his business affairs.

The investigation found evidence of misuse of public funds, forgery and fraud in 2003 to 2006, a period when Noos had income of 15 million euros ($19.4 million), according to local press reports.

They said Noos organised two tourism conferences for the Balearic Islands, charging 2.3 million euros, and channelled more than half of that money to companies owned by Urdangarin or his business partners, for items such as logistical support.

The same pattern was detected in sports summits staged in Valencia. The probe also found that Urdangarin`s companies were not able to justify the payments, the press reports said.

The royal family has `absolute respect` for court decisions, a spokesman said.

The case against the duke is one of several big fraud scandals in Spanish courts, most of them dating to thereal estate and urban development boom before the global financial crisis when local governments went on spending sprees.

Spain`s royals have distanced the duke from official events. He and his wife and four children moved in 2009 to Washington, where he represents Spanish telecoms group Telefonica.

In a display of transparency apparently prompted by the case, the royal family disclosed income details on Wednesday for the first time, showing that the king and his immediate family received 814,128 euros last year for personal expenses.

Most of their living expens-es, including housing, official travel, security, state dinners, utility bills, palace staff and transportation, are covered under other budgets, such as the foreign ministry, the interior ministry and the presidency.

A monthly opinion poll by the Social Research Centre, or CIS, shows that the historically high approval ratings for the royal family have fallen this year.

King Juan Carlos, 73, is liked and widely respected for overseeing the country`s tense transition to democracy following Francisco Franco`s nearly four-decadelong dictatorship. His son, Prince Felipe, is heir to the throne.-Reuters

http://www.dawn.com/2011/12/30/spanish-kings-son-in-law-charged-in-fraud-case.html

#Noos: Judge Subpoenas Spanish King's Son In Law

A judge subpoenaed the Spanish king's son-in-law Thursday in a corruption case that has drawn increased scrutiny to the royal family.

Inaki Urdangarin, the Duke of Palma de Mallorca, must testify on February 6, a Spanish court said in a statement.

The case, widely reported in Spanish media for weeks, has fueled public criticism of the royal family. Thursday's statement from the Balearic Islands Superior Court of Justice formally named Urdangarin as a defendant, but did not specify charges against him.

According to media reports, authorities have been investigating whether a foundation headed by Urdangarin improperly used public funds.

Mario Pascual Vives, an attorney representing Urdangarin, told reporters Thursday that his client is "absolutely innocent."

Vives said Urdangarin, who lives in Washington, was on a skiing trip in the United States and had not spoken with him about the case since the court's announcement Thursday.

Urdangarin, a former Olympic handball player, married the Spanish king's youngest daughter in 1997.

The corruption allegations have brought increased scrutiny to the monarchy as Spain faces a nationwide economic crisis.

The court's announcement came a day after Spain's royal family publicly revealed its finances for the first time in an effort to boost public confidence and transparency.

An announcement by the royal palace that Urdangarin will not participate in official family activities during the investigation and remarks by King Juan Carlos in his Christmas Eve speech that "justice is equal for everyone" have deflected public criticisms of the royal family, according to Gerardo Correas of the International School of Protocol in Madrid.

A large round of applause greeted the king at an inauguration ceremony for the new legislature earlier this week, Correas said.

But many Spaniards were still buzzing over the political scandal -- with some asking whether other members of the royal family were connected to, or aware of, Urdangarin's business dealings.

"The debate continues in the street and will continue for a long time," Correas said.


http://edition.cnn.com/2011/12/29/world/europe/spain-royal-scandal/

#Fraud : Spain's Royal Family Embroiled In Embezzlement Scandal

Controversy ... Inaki Urdangarin, with his wife Princess Cristina. Photo: Getty Images

The King of Spain's son-in-law has been summoned to testify in a widening fraud and embezzlement scandal that threatens to damage the credibility of the country's royal family.

Inaki Urdangarin, 43, a former Olympic athlete who carries the title Duke of Palma, will face court as part of an investigation into accusations that a non-profit organisation he ran was siphoning off funds from the regional government of the Balearic Islands.

The Noos Institute, which the duke ran from 2004 to 2006, is accused of misusing millions of euro in public funds. The case has made the front pages of Spanish newspapers for weeks, but a judge's decision to name Mr Urdangarin as a formal suspect took the scandal to a new level...read more


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/fraud-scandal-the-duke-the-tourism-conferences-and-the-29m-20111230-1pf54.html#ixzz1i0NSPJq5

Ruth And Jose: Focus Is Back On Missing Childrens Grandparents Finca

Police have begun a fresh search for the two siblings who disappeared from a Cordoba park on October 8.

The hunt is once more concentrating on their grandparents’ finca in Las Quemadillas.

Their investgation is now focusing on waste ground next to the country house, which has already been searched a number of times.

 

The children’s photos have also been published in the missing persons section of Interpol’s website .

 

Ruth Breton Ortiz, six, and her brother Jose, two, were last seen alive by their father, Jose Breton Gomez, 38.

 

Breton remains in prison as the main suspect.

His side of the story is that he lost sight of the siblings for a moment in a park in Cordoba, but there is no footage of him with the children and no witnesses saw him in the park with the youngsters.


http://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2011/12/21/police-search-missing-childrens-grandparents-finca-once-more/