Cospedal returns to the focus of the Kitchen: the National Court orders to study if there are "indications of criminality" in her conversations with Villarejo

The investigation into María Dolores de Cospedal within the framework of the trial for the alleged espionage of Operation Kitchen was rejected during the oral hearing and the former general secretary of the PP only testified as a witness. However, as the procedure is in its final stretch and about to be seen for judgment, the Audiencia Nacional has taken an unexpected turn by ordering new proceedings to determine if there are criminal indications related to the conversations she had with former commissioner José Manuel Villarejo.

The head of Central Investigating Court number 6 of the Audiencia Nacional, Antonio Piña, has agreed to review material seized from the former commissioner after months of having ruled out extending the case to Cospedal, despite the existence of recordings known by references such as "the little notebook," allusions to the parallel accounting attributed to Luis Bárcenas, or expressions such as "it would be better to be able to stop it" and "kill the bastard of the bastard," uttered in conversations related to the environment of the former PP treasurer.

The decision comes after a request made by the popular prosecution exercised by the PSOE and despite the contrary opinion of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office. In a clarifying resolution, the magistrate entrusts the Internal Affairs Unit of the National Police to examine the material seized from Villarejo to determine if there are recordings that contain possible "indications of criminality" in the conversations held with Cospedal and with Ignacio López del Hierro, her then-husband.

In addition to the recordings, the judge requests that other elements that could be relevant to the investigation be reviewed, including emails or possible bank transfers that could be related to the facts.

The audios pointing to Rajoy enter the scene

The resolution also incorporates into the case audios disseminated by RAC1 in 2025 that until now had been excluded from the judicial procedure. In one of these recordings, registered in 2014, Cospedal talks with Villarejo about documentation related to Bárcenas and assures that "the president" Mariano Rajoy "told me" that they had "found" material and that they had "cleaned up everything he had."

In another of the audios released by the Catalan radio station, the then popular leader is interested in the situation of Sergio Ríos, the former treasurer's driver and who acted as a confidant in Bárcenas's circle. During the conversation, Villarejo raises the convenience of incorporating him into the National Police Corps to avoid leaving "loose ends" or "corpses" pending that could become a problem in the future. Finally, Ríos would end up joining the National Police. The recording also reflects that Cospedal knew that he received around 2,000 euros per month for his participation in the operation.

The possibility of a new judicial piece

If, after examining the recordings, emails, and economic documentation, the Internal Affairs Unit found evidence of a crime related to Cospedal or López del Hierro, it would not be possible to reopen the main trial of Operation Kitchen, given its advanced stage of processing.

However, the National Court could promote an independent investigation by opening a separate piece. This new procedure would serve to clarify whether there are criminal responsibilities derived from the facts now subject to review and, if applicable, determine the opening of a future oral trial.

Among the material to be analyzed are also the recordings in which Cospedal maintains that Rajoy knew about the existence of compromising documentation related to Bárcenas. In one of them, she states: "I don't know about the last month, I know that before they had found and that more or less they had cleaned this guy of everything he had." When Villarejo asks her about the origin of that information, the then general secretary of the PP replies: "The president, no one else told me."