Álvaro García Ortiz, the first Attorney General of the State to be reprimanded by the Senate, thanks to the absolute majority of the PP and the unconditional support of Vox. Twenty months after his first appointment (August 1, 2022), García Ortiz has been embroiled in several controversies regarding his appointment policy: he promoted his former boss, Dolores Delgado, to prosecutor of the Military Chamber of the Supreme Court, in an exercise of “abuse of power” annulled by the Supreme Court. And he reappointed her months later as prosecutor of the Chamber of Democratic Memory, with a similar setback from the same court. Despite these controversial appointments, during the 20 months he has been in charge of the institution, García Ortiz has been the victim of numerous false reports about his management or his work history. These false reports, fueled by the PP and Vox, have triggered reactions from the Prosecutor’s Office that, in some cases, have had judicial consequences that now threaten García Ortiz’s continuity at the helm of the institution.
One lie involved accusations that García Ortiz, as a prosecutor, tried to blame the entire PP for the Prestige oil spill in Galicia. However, contrary to these claims, García Ortiz rejected the responsibility of the Ministry of Public Works, during the PP government, for the disaster of the Prestige. Another lie suggested that García Ortiz met with a banker who had accused the government of extortion, but this meeting never took place. There were also false allegations that García Ortiz ordered the suspension of an investigation until after the general elections, which were proven to be untrue. Additionally, there were attempts to link García Ortiz’s actions to pressure from the Prosecutor General to avoid prosecuting Carles Puigdemont for terrorism, which were also proven false.
Another false report accused García Ortiz of shutting down an investigation without seeing a key report, which was also proven to be untrue. Additionally, a claim that García Ortiz offered an agreement to the partner of a political figure and then withdrew it due to orders from above was also proven to be false. These false reports have led to legal consequences and threats to García Ortiz’s position as Attorney General. The spread of misinformation by certain media outlets and political parties has contributed to a negative perception of García Ortiz’s leadership at the Prosecutor’s Office. Despite these challenges, García Ortiz continues to carry out his duties and defend his reputation against false accusations and attacks.
