Awarded Best
22 - 28 March 2018
Hospital slapped with fine THE Hospital de Poniente in El Ejido has been o r d e r e d t o c o mpensate the family of a woman who died after falling from a balcony in 2010 with more than €187,000. According to reports, the woman, then aged 56, fell from a balcony estimated to be between four and five metres high in El Ejido in May 2017. X-rays showed that she had suffered several fractures but an orthopedic surgeon who assessed her x-rays allegedly deemed surgical intervention not necessary, but later that same day the woman suffered an alleged cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead. It was later reportedly found that the woman instead died of ‘hypovolemi c sh o c k ’ se c onda r y t o i n t e r n a l bleeding after her internal organs had suffered severe damage with an Almerian court ruling that the necessary tests were not carried out by the hospital. In a d d i t i o n t o th e €187,500 of compensation, the hospital will also have to pay the legal interests accumulated by the husband and daughter of the woman since 2010.
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Council scam shock Prison time for former official Credit: Shutterstock/Facebook
ISSUE NO. 1707
Newspaper in Spain 2018
BEHIND BARS: Former Vice-President Luis Perez Montoya (inset) and former Secretary for the Board of Tourism, Maria Teresa Gonzalez have been given lengthy sentences. the one actually invoiced.” zalez was appointed as secretary by Benjamin Park As well as their sentences, the that would see the public funds of pair also received heavy fines for the Provincial Tourism Board alFormer Vice-President of the civil liability with Gonzalez orlocated for purposes that were not Diputacion de Almeria Luis Perez dered to pay €706,000 and Monthen fulfilled. Montoya has been sentenced to toya €640,000. Magistrates have been reportmore than seven years in prison Also sentenced was welled as saying that they both after being found guilty of fraud, known businessman Joaquin would “draft invoices for serembezzling more than €700,000 Conde, who was given a fivevices or supplies that could be of public funds. year sentence and a €363,000 owned by the Board, but neverIn addition, former Secretary fine, while 11 other people were theless, these services were not for the Board of Tourism, Maria also given sentences ranging beprovided, or these supplies were Teresa Gonzalez has also been tween a year and five months to not delivered, or were delivered sentenced to spend nine years and two years. in a much lower amount than 10 months in prison for several crimes including fraud, falsifying documents and misappropriation of public funds. HUNDREDS of people reportedly gathered in Almeria City to protest in According to Spanish media, favour of the expansion of permanent prison sentences. the pair first agreed on a plan that The demonstration took place at the La Ballena sculpture in the Plaza would enable them to allocate de Almeria. The site became an improvised memorial for Gabriel Cruz, public funds for their own use in the boy alleged murdered by his father’s girlfriend Ana Quezada. September 2007. The protest coincided with others nationally which were called folA court was reportedly told lowing a vote in Spain’s Parliament against expanding the number of that the pair had made an agreecrimes that would qualify for the sentence. The death of Gabriel Cruz ment with certain businessmen has been used by supporters to justify expanding it. and businesses shortly after Gon-
Life sentence protest