Spanish Court Decides to Temporarily Release King of Spain's Brother-in-Law

A Spanish court ruled on Thursday to temporarily release Inaki Urdangarin, the brother-in-law of King of Spain Felipe VI, while he is waiting for a decision of the Supreme Court on the appeal against a six-year prison sentence.

MADRID (Sputnik) – The court also decided that Urdangarin could stay in Switzerland, where he was residing at that time. He must appear before the judicial authorities in his country of residence on the first day of each month as well as to inform the court about any trips outside Europe or a change of residence, even if it’s temporary.

On February 17, the Spanish court decided to acquit Urdangarin’s wife Infanta Cristina.

Urdangarin was accused of embezzling $7.3 million in public funds from the non-profit Noos Institute through a company owned by the royal couple, while Cristina had been suspected of involvement in fraudulent activities carried out by her husband. The court sentenced Urdangarin to six years and three months in prison for embezzlement and fraud. Among other charges, he also received a fine of 512,000 euros ($545,150). In general, six out of 17 defendants were convicted.

The king's brother-in-law and his companion Diego Torres chaired the Noos Institute, involved in organization of sporting events. The trial on embezzlement started on January 11, 2016, with some 300 witnesses having been heard. The prosecutors demanded a 19.5-year sentence for Urdangarin and a 16.6-year imprisonment for Torres.

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