Pérez has admitted on Telegram to receiving the sum “as a freelancer without an invoice,” for which he will have to pay a 25% fine on the total amount.
Spanish MEP Alvise Pérez is under investigation for the alleged illegal financing of his far-right party ahead of the June European elections after Supreme Court prosecutors uncovered evidence of a €100,000 cash transfer.
Cryptocurrency entrepreneur Álvaro Romillo allegedly handed the money in hard currency to Pérez on 27 May, just days before the European elections.
Spanish media report that Pérez, who leads the far-right The Party is Over (SALF) party, had reportedly contacted Romillo in March to create a digital wallet that would enable him to receive “anonymous and encrypted” funding.
Pérez has admitted on Telegram to receiving the sum “as a freelancer without an invoice,” for which he will have to pay a 25% fine on the total amount.
He also claims that Romillo “agreed with the public prosecutor’s office to avoid pre-trial detention for fraud by accusing the MEP of receiving the cash to help finance his election campaign.”
According to Romillo, who has provided documents showing ongoing contact between them, Pérez told him that he needed between €300,000 and €360,000 to launch his campaign for Brussels.
The messages, published by the Spanish press, indicate that the MEP sought funds that would be untraceable by the Court of Auditors.
Spain’s party financing law prohibits anyone from donating more than €50,000 in a year and requires all donations over €25,000 to be reported to the Court of Auditors.
The complaint by the Association of Cryptocurrency Users against Madeira Invest Club, Romillo’s suddenly closed business, is thought to have triggered the later complaint against Pérez.
