09/10/2013 00:00
TW
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By Humphrey Carter

PALMA
FORMER Partido Popular Palma City Councillor for Urban Development, Javier Rodrigo de Santos, yesterday appears in a Palma court for the second time in less than a week and denied three charges against him of abusing minors.

Last Thursday, de Santos was sentenced to two years for having misappropriated nearly 52'000 euros of public funds between 2003 and 2007. The money was spent using a City council credit card in a Palma singles club, a Palma hotel and massage parlour, De Santos denied that he used the money to but sexual favours but to buy cocaine for a serious habit he was suffering at the time. He subsequently refunded the money to the city council, publicly apologised and sought professional help to combat his drug addiction - factors which the judge took into account when handing down the two years sentence last week.

However, in this latest case, the prosecution is recommending that De Santos be sentenced to 24 years and three months if found guilty of the three charges of having abused three minors.