It was a bittersweet victory for Teddy Bautista. The president of the Sociedad General de Autores y Editores (SGAE), whose leadership was re-enacted on Thursday, celebrated his triumph on a Federal Court, accused of alleged fraud. The Guardia Civil, on Friday, arrested a total of nine people, including several executives of this organization, considered the main collecting society for songwriters, composers and music publishers in Spain, similar to ASCAP in the US.
In addition to SGAE´s president Bautista, among those arrested were SGAE´s CFO, Richard Azcuaga or Jose Luis Rodriguez Neri, executive director of the Digital Society of Authors (SDAE), the SGAE´s tech unit.
Members of the CCU (Guardia Civil´s Central Operational Unit) and the Police raided the headquarters of the SGAE in the early hours in search of documentation to support the charges of alleged fraud and funds misappropriation.
Guardia Civil sources told this newspaper that also are investigating other companies offices and summer residences of some of the SGAE´s members connected with the plot.
Early findings suggest that there could be a total of 400 million euros missing in shadow accounting according to lawyer Josep Jover, who manages two of the three complaints filed against the SGAE.
The investigation points to SGAE´s executive members as been using the non profit organization to transfer money to its subsidiaries and from there to private companies related in some way with SGAE´s leadership, family or friends.
Translated and Edited in English by Jose L. De Haro
