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Diari de Catalunya

The Innova case in Reus goes to trial 14 years after its inception

The preliminary issues hearing will take place this Monday, marking the beginning of a judicial process that has suffered numerous postponements.

Judge's gavel on a wooden desk in a courtroom.
IA

Judge's gavel on a wooden desk in a courtroom.

The long-awaited trial of the Innova case in Reus begins this Monday at the Provincial Court of Tarragona, fourteen years after its inception, with the preliminary issues session.

After numerous postponements, the Innova case finally reaches the trial phase. This Monday, preliminary issues will be addressed, a crucial step before delving into the merits of the case. The case, which has seen its scope reduced with the archiving of several separate pieces, will now focus on the main piece and piece number 2, related to allegedly unjustified invoices linked to the construction of the Hospital Universitari Sant Joan de Reus.
In parallel, possible conformity agreements are being negotiated between the involved parties. The definitive configuration of the procedure will be outlined after this initial session, where preliminary issues will be raised to ensure that the processing has complied with the law. The trial, which had to be suspended in May 2024 due to health problems of one of the defendants, is scheduled to begin on November 26 if no prior agreements are reached.
The Public Prosecutor's Office is seeking sentences of between seven and ten years in prison for the eight defendants in the main piece. This investigates the payment of invoices worth over one million euros to an architect and a former director of CatSalut. According to the indictment, both had allegedly agreed with the then mayor of Reus and a person from the Department of Health that Innova would hire them as advisors for the Sant Joan Hospital project.
The prosecution alleges that Innova paid over 720,000 euros to one of the implicated individuals between 2007 and 2011 for alleged strategic consulting work, channeled through a company created shortly after his dismissal from CatSalut. Another implicated individual, an architect, was hired by Innova in June 2007 for technical advice on hospital construction for 387,000 euros, plus 8,900 euros in travel expenses. This architect allegedly created a company in 2008 and, according to the prosecutor, pressured another company to hire him for the works, receiving an additional 186,400 euros.
The main unknown now is whether the trial will proceed in its entirety or if it will conclude earlier with conformity agreements. Sources close to the case indicate that a significant portion of the defendants would welcome this option, given the lengthy investigation and repeated postponements. This scenario is favored by the existence of highly qualified undue delays, a mitigating circumstance that could lead to a reduction in sentence.

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