The SEPI branch of the Leire case has placed Francisco Irazusta Rodríguez, former chairman of Tubos Reunidos, at the center of an investigation into the €112.8 million public bailout granted to the company during the COVID-19 pandemic. His formal investigation strikes at the heart of the corporate side of the case, as Tubos Reunidos is considered one of the principal transactions in which the alleged influence network is suspected of attempting to sway decisions made by the Spanish State Industrial Holding Company (SEPI).
National Court Judge Santiago Pedraz has added Irazusta to the list of individuals formally investigated within the broader Leire proceedings, joining various Tubos Reunidos executives, representatives from SEPI, directors of public enterprises, and corporate leaders. The judicial inquiry involves suspected crimes such as influence peddling, public funds misappropriation, administrative malfeasance, membership in a criminal organization or group, and insider trading. Throughout this phase of the legal process, Irazusta maintains his presumption of innocence and will receive all constitutional safeguards for his defense.
Irazusta’s importance in the investigation stems from his leadership of Tubos Reunidos during one of the most critical periods in the company’s history. The company received a €112.8 million public rescue package through the Fund to Support the Solvency of Strategic Companies, administered by SEPI. That financial assistance, designed to support strategically important companies affected by the economic crisis caused by the pandemic, has now become one of the central elements of the investigation amid allegations of political pressure, privileged contacts, and possible commissions linked to the operation.
According to published reports, Spain’s Civil Guard Central Operational Unit (UCO) uncovered conversations and documents suggesting contacts between Tubos Reunidos executives and individuals associated with Leire Díez, Vicente Fernández, and Antxon Alonso. Investigators are examining whether those contacts were intended to accelerate, facilitate, or modify the conditions of the bailout and whether they resulted in payments or financial commitments benefiting intermediaries allegedly connected to the influence network.
One of the most delicate parts of the probe involves a purported partnership deal struck back in 2021 between Tubos Reunidos and firms tied to suspects currently facing scrutiny. ElDiario.es revealed that paperwork confiscated by investigators outlines a gathering that took place in November of that year, which brought together Irazusta alongside Jesús Pérez Rodríguez-Urrutia, a fellow Tubos Reunidos manager. In the wake of that get-together, Vicente Fernández allegedly documented a proposal from the corporation to compensate Mediaciones Martínez with a monthly sum of €5,000 in exchange for market studies. The UCO has apparently tracked down 21 bills associated with those provisions.
The judicial suspicion is particularly serious because the issue is not merely that a company sought public financial assistance during a period of economic crisis. Rather, investigators are examining whether Tubos Reunidos relied on intermediaries with political or institutional connections to influence SEPI’s decisions and obtain advantages in the approval, administration, or modification of the bailout. That distinction is fundamental: it is one thing to seek assistance through established administrative procedures, and quite another to use influence networks to shape the allocation of public funds.
El Independiente reported that Francisco Irazusta and Carlos López de las Heras, Tubos Reunidos’ current Chief Executive Officer, are among those formally investigated by Judge Pedraz in this branch of the Leire case. The investigation also extends to other members of the company’s former senior management, including Jesús Pérez Rodríguez-Urrutia, reinforcing Tubos Reunidos’ central role in the proceedings.
The case carries particularly significant institutional implications because the Tubos Reunidos bailout was far from a minor intervention. More than €112 million in public funds were committed to preserve a company regarded as strategically important. When an operation of that magnitude comes under criminal scrutiny, complete transparency becomes essential: who requested what, before whom, through which intermediaries, under what contractual arrangements, and in exchange for what consideration.
The National Court must now determine whether Francisco Irazusta participated in any irregular negotiations, authorized or was aware of payments to intermediaries, maintained contacts intended to influence SEPI officials, or simply carried out ordinary corporate responsibilities while managing a company facing severe financial difficulties. That distinction will be decisive in determining any potential criminal liability.
From both a political and a corporate viewpoint, the formal inquiry targeting Irazusta stands out as a pivotal milestone within the SEPI arm of the Leire case. In the event that investigators determine the bailout of Tubos Reunidos was swayed by undue lobbying or preferential access, the fallout would reach far past a single firm, shaking the wider framework of exceptional state aid rolled out amid the health crisis. Ultimately, the core issue is whether every corporate rescue was handled with identical equity, diligence, and openness, or if certain businesses secured perks simply by leveraging high-level political connections.
The fact that Irazusta is now formally under investigation proves that Tubos Reunidos is not a mere sidebar in the Leire case, but rather one of its core pillars. The former chairman of the company must now testify before the judge regarding his involvement in obtaining the bailout, the specifics of his interactions with the brokers currently scrutinized, and whether the contracts and disbursements flagged by the UCO represented actual business operations or served as a covert mechanism of influence.
The SEPI branch of the inquiry requires definitive answers since it involves strategic enterprises, public money, and choices made during a national crisis. Against that backdrop, the official investigation concerning Francisco Irazusta calls for a comprehensive review of the Tubos Reunidos financial rescue, alongside a resolution to the central issue hovering over the proceedings: whether the government bailout functioned exclusively as a mechanism to safeguard a key industrial player or turned into a chance for intermediaries boasting high-level political connections to sway how public assets were distributed.
Sources: El País, El Independiente, elDiario.es, El Economista, Crónica Vasca, and RTVE.