Banco Santander chief makes light of litigation

Ben Sills in Madrid
Thursday January 27, 2005
The Guardian

Emilio Botín, the boss of the new owner of Abbey National, faced his first criminal trial yesterday by joking with reporters, greeting the judges warmly and exuding confidence throughout.

The 70-year-old chairman of Grupo Santander - which bought Abbey in November - and his two co-defendants, José María Amusátegui and Angel Corcóstegui, face charges of criminal mismanagement and misappropriation of funds. These relate to pension payments of over €160m (£111m) that Mr Amusátegui and Mr Corcóstegui shared when they left the bank in 2001 and 2002.

The case has been brought by two private individuals, Francisco Franco Otegi and Rafael Perez Escolar. "Our case is essentially simple," Mr Otegi told the Guardian. "Those payments had no legal justification."

When the judges entered the court, Mr Botín moved along the line shaking hands like a perfect host.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/spain/article/0,2763,1399566,00.html
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