The recording was reportedly leaked from the files of the Central Operational Unit (UCO), which is responsible for investigating and prosecuting the most serious forms of crime and organized offenses. Image: El Mundo.
Guacamaya, June 13, 2025. The Spanish newspaper El Mundo published a recording on Friday that allegedly captures a meeting between Koldo García and José Luis Ábalos on April 9, 2019. In it, the two former high-ranking Spanish officials discussed a monthly commission of €500,000, with the mediation of Víctor de Aldama, on behalf of Citgo, a company controlled by the so-called “Interim Government” of Juan Guaidó.
Venezuela’s Prosecutor General has already announced on social media that a new arrest warrant has been requested against Guaidó “for acts of corruption in Spain” following the release of the recording.
Former Minister of Development José Luis Ábalos, his advisor Koldo García, and intermediary Víctor de Aldama are under investigation for illicit contracts to sell medical supplies to the Spanish state during the COVID-19 pandemic. The three have also been charged with additional crimes as the investigations progress.
In the recording, Koldo states that the three would receive million of euros in commissions from Citgo, a U.S.-based subsidiary of PDVSA. The first Donald Trump administration had handed control of the company to Guaidó, who, in turn, would be rewarding Ábalos for his mediation with Pedro Sánchez’s government.
The audio does not explicitly mention Citgo, but Koldo refers to “an oil company supervised by the U.S., because control was taken from Maduro and given to Guaidó’s people.” The €500,000 monthly commission would last for three years, “thanks to you, because you received [members of the Interim Government], because you paved the way for them to be recognized by the Spanish government.”
The recording also mentions a “Gonzalo”, who would be the “intermediary” between Guaidó and Ábalos—in this case, referring to Aldama by his middle name.
Paradoxically, the three have also been implicated in the “Delcygate” scandal, which suggests they had close ties to Maduro’s government. This second case involves Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez’s visit to Ábalos in Madrid in January 2020, when he was Transport Minister. Rodríguez was banned from entering the Schengen zone due to EU sanctions. It is alleged that she made a payment in gold and cash to settle debts with the airline Air Europa, facilitated by Ábalos, Koldo, and Aldama.
