Editor’s Note
This article reports on the preliminary valuation of former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero’s jewelry collection, which initial analysis suggests contains authentic gemstones worth at least one million euros—significantly higher than previously stated by his inner circle.
According to an initial examination, the jewelry of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is authentic. As reported by El Confidencial this Monday, the preliminary analysis has identified rubies, emeralds, sapphires, and even diamonds, some of the most coveted gemstones. In fact, the value of the former Prime Minister’s collection is estimated at least one million euros — far exceeding what the president’s inner circle had stated — although this is an initial approximation.
It was last week when the investigating judge of the Plus Ultra case, José Luis Calama, commissioned the jewelry store Ansorena to conduct a full appraisal of the jewelry found on May 12 by agents of the Spanish police’s Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF). At that time, agents discovered over a hundred necklaces, bracelets, watches, rings, bangles, and earrings in a safe in Zapatero’s office on Ferraz Street.
These pieces have never been declared by the former president or his family. The group features exuberant designs in an Arabic style, each set consisting of a necklace, a bracelet, a ring, and two earrings. Each set has a different color: green, red, and blue, with dozens of small crystals.
The discovery caused such surprise among investigators that they initially considered the jewelry might be imitations or replicas of pieces with precious stones, but the first inspection indicates they are real. The lots have been examined tactilely and visually, and subjected to tests with gemological instruments. It has been concluded that the green set contains emeralds, while the red set contains rubies. It has not yet been confirmed, but it is most likely that the stones in the blue set are sapphires, while the crystals would be authentic diamonds. Even the white metal used to assemble the precious stones is believed to be of high value. Its composition exceeds the usual standards of high jewelry, and it is thought that to find something similar, one would have to look in collections of European royal houses reserved for grand ceremonies.
There are pieces of more modest and sober appearance that would fit the explanation offered by Zapatero’s inner circle. His spokesman, Luis Arroyo, assured that the jewelry came from inheritances. However, this more valuable part would come from gifts received by the former president after leaving office in 2011. According to the initial examination, the provisional estimate for the entire collection is at least one million euros, although the amount that will be considered for the investigation will be the one finally communicated by Ansorena to the National Court.
All of this complicates his legal situation, as he would never have declared the jewelry and it is unknown how they entered the country — any goods brought across the border exceeding 430 euros require payment of 21% VAT. That is, these facts could lead to another charge for tax fraud and reinforce the evidence regarding his alleged influence network.