€7,8 million in bail money for Catalan leaders – so far
Pro-independence politicians have paid huge sums of money to skip prison and some have even offered their houses as guarantee
Nine pro-independence politicians and activists are in pre-trial prison and seven are abroad fighting extradition. A total of 25 people are being sent to trial for the October 1 referendum and the declaration of independence. And four others are being investigated by the Court of Auditors for organizing, in 2014, a non-binding vote on independence. The judicial consequences of the independence process in Catalonia are extensive, but do not only imply imprisonments or extradition requests. They also have an economic impact. So far, Spanish Courts have asked pro-independence leaders to pay up to €7.8 million on bails.
The figure peaks to €8.3 million if we include, as well, the money paid to Spanish courts to release politicians that later on returned to jail. That amount, €550,000, was returned to them once they were sent back to prison.
So, what is all this money for?
The biggest sum, up to €5.2 million is the money that the Court of Auditors is asking to former Catalan president Artur Mas and three of his ministers for organizing a non-binding vote on independence in 2014. They have managed to pay up to €2,8 million and have offered their houses and properties as guarantee for the rest.
Catalan politicians have paid €410,000 to get out of prison or avoid being jailed. Former ministers Meritxell Borràs and Carles Mundó paid €100,000 each to leave prison after being behind bars for more than a month. Four members of the Parliament Bureau paid €25,000 each to avoid entering jail, while another former minister who resigned before the declaration of independence paid €50,000 and only spent a night in prison. The secretary general of the pro-independence party ERC, Marta Rovira, paid €60,000 to skip prison in March. She is now in Switzerland, fighting extradition.
The Spanish Supreme Court is also asking all members of the last Catalan government to pay €2.1 million, the money that the investigation considers was spent in the October 1 referendum, plus a civil responsibility penalty. Catalan leaders are being prosecuted for misuse of public funds in relation to the referendum, although the Spanish government confirmed that it has not been able to prove that public money was spent in the vote.
New imprisonments
Pro-independence organizations also paid up to €550,000 to get out of jail five Catalan leaders. But all this money was returned on March 23 after the Spanish Supreme Court decided they should be imprisoned again. They are the former President of the Catalan Parliament Carme Forcadell (who paid €150,000 on bail) and sacked ministers Dolors Bassa, Jordi Turull, Josep Rull and Raül Romeva, who paid €100,000 each to leave prison.