Ponsatí risks being arrested again in Spain if she does not go to the Supreme Court on Monday for her prosecution for 1-O

The former counselor and MEP is expected to be in Barcelona on Sunday for Sant Jordi

MADRID/BARCELONA, 22 Abr. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The former Catalan counselor Clara Ponsatí is summoned at 11:00 a.m. this Monday in the Supreme Court so that the instructor of the 'procés', magistrate Pablo Llarena, can take a statement as being prosecuted for a crime of disobedience for the illegal referendum on October 1 of 2017, although the also MEP already advanced on March 28 that she did not plan to attend, which could lead to her being arrested again to take her before the high court.

The magistrate of the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court (TS) summoned Ponsatí after he appeared in Barcelona on March 28, ignoring his obligation to appear before the court, precisely so that this investigative statement could be held and continue like this with the criminal procedure, paralyzed until then for being a fugitive in Brussels.

That day, after being arrested by the Mossos d'Esquadra and taken before a court on duty in Barcelona, ​​​​by virtue of the national arrest warrant that was in force, Llarena agreed to release her and summon her for this Monday.

In statements to the press, his defense attorney, Gonzalo Boye, warned that his client had "no intention" to comply with the high court because he does not recognize his authority. Last week, Ponsatí herself replied that she had "other things to do" when asked if she planned to go to the Supreme Court.

One day before his appointment at the TS, for Sant Jordi, Ponsatí will be in Barcelona signing copies of his book 'Molts i nigú' at the Ona Llibres stand, on the corner of Passeig de Gràcia with calle Diputació.

If he returns to plant the Supreme Court, Llarena already warned in his order of March 28 that "it will entail the modification of his personal situation and his conduction before this court by the public force."

Legal sources consulted by Europa Press explain that, if she is in Spain and does not go to the TS, she could be detained again, although in a merely instrumental way, that is, to put her in front of Llarena and be able to complete the procedural process.

However, the sources rule out that pretrial detention can be imposed because the precautionary measure cannot be more onerous than the penalty attached to the crime charged, being in this case one of disobedience, which does not contemplate a prison sentence, only a fine and disqualification.

If the day and time arrived, Ponsatí were outside of Spain, the sources indicate that Llarena could return to the situation prior to March 28, reactivating the national arrest warrant and the declaration of rebellion.

In any case, it should be remembered that Llarena annulled the European and international search and arrest warrants against Ponsatí and the other fugitives from 1-O, specifying that he could only reactivate them for the former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont and the former advisers Toni Comín and Lluis Puig, because after the penal reform that repealed sedition and modified embezzlement, they were the only ones accused of crimes that entailed jail time.

The third scenario contemplated is that Ponsatí does not appear in the Supreme Court but his defense justifies it in some way, which would open the door for Llarena to give him a second chance by setting a new date for the investigative statement.

On the other hand, if Ponsatí appears voluntarily, it is foreseeable that Llarena will follow the same steps as with the former CUP deputy in Parliament Anna Gabriel and the former Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food Meritxell Serret.

Serret appeared before the Supreme Court in March 2021 from Brussels and Gabriel did so last July from Switzerland. Then, the magistrate informed them of their prosecution and released them, summoning them for the preliminary investigation. After giving a statement, both remained at large.

In the most recent case of Gabriel, shortly after the 'procés' instructor ended the investigation and the Criminal Chamber sent the case to the Provincial Court of Barcelona, ​​considering that it is the competent body, given that the former deputy of the CUP no longer enjoys the status of registered.

However, in this extreme the situation of Ponsatí is different. The condition of her MEP places the competence in the Supreme Court, unless she leaves office before the oral trial is opened.

Ponsatí's criminal horizon cleared up after the entry into force on January 12 of the criminal reform that repealed sedition and modified embezzlement, forcing Llarena to review the processing of those fleeing the 'procés'.

Until then, the former counselor was prosecuted for sedition, so the disappearance of this crime - punishable by between 10 and 15 years in prison and disqualification - led Llarena to replace it with that of disobedience, punishable with a fine of 3 to 12 months and disqualification from 6 months to 2 years.

Although both the Prosecutor's Office and the State Attorney's Office requested the investigator to add the new crime of aggravated public disorder, with penalties of 3 to 5 years in prison and 6 to 8 years of disqualification, Llarena rejected it.