Miguel Blesa, the ex-chairman of Caja Madrid, has been incarcerated in the Soto del Real prison in Madrid for just under 24 hours. Judge Elpidio José Silva sent him there without bail following an investigation of Caja Madrid's purchase of City National Bank of Florida. The judge is also investigating a supposed 100 million dollar contract involved in the purchase. In 2008, elEconomista reported on the strangely exorbitant price that Caja Madrid paid for the U.S. bank. Last month Blesa spent one day in jail, but was released on bail for 2.5 million euros.
During his testimony, Blesa told the court that 100 million dollars were "set aside" as a cash position during the City Bank of Florida deal "in case any issues or opportunities arose." Specifically, the defendent argued that he signed a forward exchange contract to hedge the purchase of CNB and the Mexican mortgage lender Hipotecaria Su Casita.
A report carried out by the Guardia Civil would have shed light on the deal. Emails betwen Blesa and a former CFO, Ildefonso Sánchez Barcoj, show that they were aware of the deal was intended to elude regulatory oversight.
Judge Silva issued a swift ruling this morning against both Blesa and Sánchez Barcoj. A formal report will be presented within several days by a group of the Guardia Civil that covers financial crimes.
The whole issue stems from Caja Madrid paying way too much for City National Bank of Florida, an operation that was used to rake in high commissions and launder money. The trade union Manos Limpias has asked for Blesa to go to prison without bail, and now he's there.
