The president of BBVA, Carlos Torres Vila, said this Thursday that the investigation into the bank’s relationship with the company Cenyt, of former Police Commissioner José Manuel Villarejo, “is taking too long.”
During the virtual press conference held on the occasion of the presentation of the results of last year, Torres Vila referred to the last extension decreed by the judge of the National Court Manuel García Castellón, and advocated that “it be the last” , since “this is very tiresome”.
Last week, the head of the central court of Instruction number 6 extended the term of the investigations until next July 29, as several tests are pending, including six testimonials, from which new proceedings could arise.
“We would like there to be no more extensions. This is very tiring, and I think that the proceedings can be carried out in these six months”, insisted the president of BBVA, who has expressed his respect for Justice without forgetting that “the instruction was opened in 2018 and we are in 2022”.
However, he has preferred not to assess the cause: “We update our point of view on the web and there is a good historical evolution of the bank, in collaboration with the Justice, of what has happened here and taking action.”
Carlos Torres: “We would like there to be no more extensions. The instruction opened in 2018 and we are in 2022”
Given the interest of the journalists, Torres Vila explained that, from the outset, BBVA’s strategy “has been to investigate what happened, in depth”, and spoke of the forensic report commissioned from PwC, which was a job ” very deep”.
Also “all the raw information has been delivered to the judge”, added the president of the entity, who understands that “it is difficult to collaborate more intensely”.
“Nothing other than what we have delivered has emerged. Our collaboration has been verified and I understand that there are different perceptions, that each one perceives what they perceive, but the reality is what I am saying, that it would be difficult to collaborate in a way more intense. What we want is for the investigation to advance with all the necessary steps, of course, but without delay,” he stressed.
The Trap operationthe ninth separate piece of the Villarejo case, revolves around the alleged espionage services to politicians, businessmen and journalists that the bank commissioned from the former commissioner since 2004, when the construction company Sacyr began a movement to try to take control of the entity that finally was unsuccessful.
In mid-2019, the judge agreed to indict both BBVA and its former president Francisco González in a case in which other former directors of the bank were listed as being investigated, such as the former head of Security Julio Corrochano, or the former CEO Ángel Cano.
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