Rafael Moreno and Áurea Borrego, former socialist mayors of Huévar del Aljarafe, are on trial for corruption over seven irregular hires. The prosecution seeks 13 years of disqualification for both.
The First Section of the Provincial Court of Seville hosted the first session of the trial against former mayors of Huévar del Aljarafe, Rafael Moreno and Áurea Borrego, both from the PSOE. They are accused of a continued crime of corruption for having hired seven locals from the municipality without following the established legal procedure. The prosecution is requesting 13 years of special disqualification from public office or employment.
The former mayors defend their management
Rafael Moreno was the first to testify. The former mayor claimed that most of the contracts came from other administrations and that the established procedures were always followed. "Everything had a marked procedure and we followed that faithfully," he stated before the court. "All mayors are bombarded with requests for jobs, housing... Always," he added, emphasising that no irregularities were committed. "Citizens were not asked for ID to enter the Town Hall," he quipped.
Moreno explained that the proof that everything was done correctly was "the budget and the liquidation." According to his account, both the mayor's office and the deputy mayors received locals with needs daily, and if there was a possibility of hiring, the case was referred to social services or other departments. "Once we knew the situation of the local, we would send them to social services," he indicated.
For her part, Áurea Borrego also denied her involvement in the hiring. She stated that when she arrived at the Town Hall, there were only three officials: the secretary-controller and two local police officers. She claimed that she did not give "any directives" for hiring and that the only benefit she obtained was "the satisfaction of giving that person three months of work." The former mayor recalled that she promoted a redundancy plan and an adjustment plan in the council.
The current mayor points to a paper shredder
The first witness to testify after the accused was the current mayor of Huévar, María Eugenia Moreno (PP), who is not related to the former mayor despite the surname. Moreno recounted that upon taking office, she found in the office "a series of boxes that were clearly for destruction." "When we opened them, we saw names, surnames, streets, homes, nicknames, and the voting numbers of each house. It indicated the type of aid that could be given to those families," she stated.
The mayor specified that there were about six boxes with handwritten documents, some of which "are still kept to determine whether they can be destroyed or not." She also noted that Áurea Borrego responded to her requests to bring the objections to the plenary, while Rafael Moreno ignored them. The defence of the former mayors had requested the nullification of the proceedings, considering that the case originated from a complaint regarding electoral crime and embezzlement, but the First Section did not accept the request and continued with the trial.
The trial will continue on future dates with the testimony of the secretary-controller and a civil guard, among other witnesses. The locals of Huévar del Aljarafe are closely following a case that has marked local political life in recent years. The verdict, which could arrive in weeks, will determine whether the former mayors are disqualified from public office, which would be a severe blow to their political careers.
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