Julio Martínez Martínez has taken the first step to place all responsibility for the activity of the company Análisis Relevante on former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, his personal friend since 2011. The businessman already informed the National Court judge investigating him of his new position yesterday in a written statement, and today he ratified it in court.
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According to sources present at the declaration, and as interpreted by Judge José Luis Calama himself, Martínez has defined his role as a mere “go-between” for Zapatero’s businesses.
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The businessman explained that the company Análisis Relevante (AR) was created as a vehicle to collect payments for Zapatero’s contracts, as he was the one with the influence. One of the former president’s clients was Plus Ultra, but there were also others, such as Inteligencia Prospectiva or Softgestor.
However, Martínez has distanced himself from the actions that the former president would have carried out in favor of such companies. His line of defense contradicts what Zapatero stated, who denied making any arrangements for the airline or any other, and limited his collection from Análisis Relevante to advisory work and report preparation.
Likewise, Martínez Martínez has stressed, according to these sources, that Zapatero, who had that capacity for influence, secured the clients, and they paid him through AR. Afterwards, the former president collected payments through invoices for advisory services to his friend’s company.
Martínez has also acknowledged that regarding the Plus Ultra rescue, the agreement reached with the company was that the 1% success fee payments, after the Government granted aid of 53 million euros, would be received in installments through several of Martínez’s companies over years due to the “media pressure” generated after the aid concession became known. In fact, the events were reported, although the case was closed due to lack of evidence of criminality.
Martínez has maintained that, in addition to Zapatero’s work, he also carried out other tasks on his own behalf for Plus Ultra, especially in Venezuela to help with certain licenses. The businessman has assured that his direct contact there was the then vice president and now Venezuelan president Delcy Rodríguez.
