The verdict, issued by the First Section of the Cádiz Court, finds Lorenzo Sánchez, who served as mayor of Rota for Roteños Unidos (RRUU) from 2003 to 2010, guilty of two counts of administrative malfeasance in conjunction with two counts of embezzlement of public funds. This ruling stems from the case known as the “Okupas case” (Squatters case).
The court has determined that the former mayor of Rota used municipal funds to compensate illegal occupants, encouraging them to vacate properties that the City Council intended for new urban development. In exchange for their departure, the squatters received a sum exceeding 48,000 euros, an amount that allowed them to cover the down payment for another home.
The agreement of the Local Government Board did not cover the delivery of any amount of money to the people who were illegally occupying these homes, as they did not possess any title that enabled them to reside in them, not having been awarded them according to the 1976 Plenary agreement.
The judicial resolution details that, in 1976, the Rota City Council relocated residents of a shantytown to 26 social rental homes on Zorrilla and Virgen de las Nieves streets. Over time, some of these homes were illegally occupied. Faced with the deterioration of the Zorrilla block and its transformation into a drug sales point, the council decided to demolish them for new urban planning.
On October 24, 2006, the Local Government Board, at the proposal of Lorenzo Sánchez, approved an allocation of 600,000 euros for the relocation or economic compensation of owners or titleholders with possession rights. However, the sentence emphasizes that this agreement did not contemplate payments to illegal occupants. Despite this, Sánchez signed two agreements in 2007, disbursing a total of 48,739.11 euros to four squatters. This money came from municipal coffers and was used for down payments on new homes marketed by Promociones Castellano.
The Cádiz Court has ordered Lorenzo Sánchez and the four squatters involved to return the sum to the Rota City Council and has declared the agreements in question null and void. The sentence includes a mitigating factor for undue delays, but with only a one-degree reduction, due to the defendant's previous record. Sánchez was previously convicted in the “Uniformes case” and is awaiting another sentence in the “Parking case”.
