After twelve sessions of the trial, the defense teams have harshly criticized the investigation, labeling it a “financial striptease” due to its lack of foundation and limits, which has allowed the scrutiny of operations dating back over 30 years. The court, presided over by José Ricardo de Prada, is scheduled to hear 61 witnesses this week amidst organizational chaos and continuous "flashbacks" in the accusatory narrative presented by the Public Prosecutor's Office and the State Attorney's Office.
One of the clearest examples supporting the defense's argument is the so-called Baró Case, which attempted to link Jordi Pujol Ferrusola to commissions from FC Barcelona through the shirt sponsorship contract with the Kappa brand in the early nineties. The UDEF maintained that two transfers received by Joan Baró (who died in 2024) in 1992 and 1993 were payments for this mediation.
“"I never asked for a bank statement; at that time, I didn't do it, it was very personal."
However, the police theory completely fell apart. Joan Baró, who testified before Judge José de De la Mata in 2016, denied knowing Pujol Ferrusola or having any joint business ventures. Furthermore, it was confirmed that the transfers of 30 and 35 million pesetas, which the police linked to the Kappa agreement (a company established almost two years after the alleged deposits), did not exist in the Andbank bank statement.
This fact reinforces the defense's argument that many of the investigated transfers were, in reality, internal compensations used by Andorran bank managers to distribute cash among their clients in the early nineties, without corresponding to any real commercial transaction. To support this version, numerous witnesses who received similar transfers are scheduled to testify this week.
