José Manuel Medina and four former councillors face allegations of administrative misconduct over payments approved during the 2003–2007 council term
The trial of former Orihuela mayor José Manuel Medina and four former councillors has opened at the Provincial Court in Elche, with defence lawyers calling for the proceedings to be annulled.
Medina, Antonio Franco, Araceli Vilella, Paz Chazarra and José Antonio Aniorte are accused of alleged administrative misconduct relating to the approval of more than 600 invoices during the 2003–2007 municipal term.
The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office is seeking an eight-and-a-half-year ban from holding public office for each defendant.
Prosecutors allege that payments were authorised without the necessary administrative procedures or supporting contracts. The invoices related mainly to services provided in Orihuela Costa and renovation work at the Palace of the Marquis of Arneva, Orihuela City Hall’s main building.
The prosecution also claims that part of the renovation work was divided into smaller contracts to avoid a formal public tendering process.
Defence challenges validity of proceedings
The opening hearing was devoted entirely to preliminary objections raised by the defence, meaning the prosecutor’s response was postponed until the next session.
Medina’s lawyer, Federico Ros, presented several arguments in support of annulment. These included an alleged delay in the prosecutor’s 2010 appeal against an earlier dismissal of the case, the length of the investigation and the time taken before the defendants were formally questioned.
The defence also argued that the indictment was too broad and failed to explain clearly the alleged role of each defendant.
Ros questioned the reliability of a former municipal auditor described by the defence as a key prosecution witness. He also challenged hundreds of documents submitted to the case, claiming they consisted of unnumbered photocopies rather than originals or officially certified copies.
The defence further argued that the original investigation, which began in 2006, concerned different matters from those eventually included in the indictment. It claimed investigators later requested procurement records covering several years in what was described as an overly broad and exploratory inquiry.
Another defence lawyer, Marina Sansano, argued that paying invoices subject to official objections or without a formal contract could constitute an administrative irregularity without necessarily amounting to a criminal offence.
Former mayor maintains innocence
Medina, who served as mayor of Orihuela from 1995 until 2007, said before entering court that he had faced 16 separate legal proceedings since leaving office. He said the previous cases had either been dismissed or ended in acquittal and expressed confidence that the same would happen in the current trial.
Several former and current municipal officials have been summoned to give evidence during future sessions.
The court has not yet ruled on the defence requests for annulment. All five defendants deny wrongdoing and are presumed innocent unless convicted by the court.
