New twist in the case of traffic fines in El Poble Nou de Benitatxell. The Judge has summoned to declare the former mayor of Poble Nou de Benitatxell, Josep Femenía (Red CV), for a possible crime of embezzlement and prevarication.
This case came to court in 2018 after three of the current councilors of Més Benitatxell brought to the Prosecutor's Office various evidence and documentation proving that the Consistory stopped processing almost a hundred complaints made by the Local Police between the end of 2013 and the beginning of 2017, period in which Femenía held the Mayor's Office.
Initially, the Prosecutor's Office only requested the imputation of the municipal comptroller secretary, Jesús Castro, for having allegedly committed the crimes of prevarication and embezzlement, causing economic damage to the municipal coffers. Now, after four years of investigations, the Judge has also summoned the former mayor.
The reports provided by the councilors of Més Benitatxell proved that, between 2013 and 2017, the Consistory had stopped processing and, therefore, not collecting 85 penalties. The reports prepared by the Local Police Headquarters indicated that, as of the fourth quarter of 2013, the procedure for investigating complaints was modified and the status of instructor of such procedure was revoked from the Chief of Police. The entry and exit register of the Local Police was abolished, with which communications began to be centralized from the general register of the town hall.
Since then, the documentation sent by the Police and the cash paid by the drivers who paid the penalty on the spot remained in the hands of the Mayor's Office. Periodically, the Police transferred the complaint bulletins to the Consistory for their subsequent referral to the SUMA tax body, which was delegated the management and collection of the complaints. This way of acting was maintained until January 16, 2017, when the chief officer of the Local Police was again appointed instructor and electronic communication with SUMA was reactivated. During that period, the management of the fines was abandoned, which produced their prescription.
“This case is very serious. Four years passed without managing a single fine or sanction, with all that this means for the public coffers. There was a total neglect of functions and great economic damage to the people. We trust in justice and we hope that the case will be clarified soon”, declared the spokesman for the Més Benitatxell municipal group, Víctor Bisquert.
