Marbella corruption case gets under way again

Juan Antonio Roca

MARBELLA (Agencies) In the renewal of the Malaya corruption case in Marbella, its principal character, Juan Antonio Roca, said yesterday that he bought prize-winning lottery tickets to 'avoid paying taxes on the petty cash money' and has denied that his wife, María Rosa Jimeno, and daughter, María Roca -both of them under charges of money laundering in the case- had any knowledge of the operations he carried out. Roca said that some of the money was his and another part of it his wife's, but he had access to it. "I had the money and I invested it like that," said the alleged head of the corruption network on Marbella Council. The trial started a new 'block' on Monday, this one regarding money laundering and related to artworks and prize-winning lottery tickets. Papers filed in the case say that Roca bought lottery tickets that had won prizes but paid well over the prize money involved.