PP files lawsuit against Benavides

OPPOSITION councillors in Almuñecar have presented a criminal lawsuit against town mayor Juan Carlos Benavides.

Partido Popular (PP) councillor Juan Luis González Montoro alleges señor Benavides is guilty of committing malfeasance and trafficking influences.

The claims come after Almuñecar council officials put the asphalting of certain roads in the town out to public tender only after the work had been completed earlier this year.

The lawsuit was presented in front of judges in the Costa Tropical town on September 29.

According to the claims, Empresa de Gestión de Obras y Asfaltado (EGOA) asphalted calle Guadix and the promenades of Velilla, Reina Sofía, San Cristóbal and La Herradura between June 19 and 26 this year at a cost of 420,000 euros after the town’s mayor divided the work into lots to avoid the correct legal procedures of awarding tenders.

Companies were then invited to bid for the contract to carry out the work two weeks later on July 11.

Señor González Montoro alleges EGOA were awarded the contract to carry out the asphalting on July 20.

“After the contract was signed, no further work was done,” he said at a press conference.

At the time of the initial allegations in July, señor Benavides denied the claims. He said:

“We have followed the correct procedures in giving this work to EGOA.

“It is obvious that an electoral campaign is just around the corner. It is interesting to know that there are dozens of superfluous expenses bills in the town hall remaining from the PP-PSOE coalition administration, which González Montero worked for.”

A lawsuit was also presented against Ricardo Sánchez Alarcón, a legal representative of EGOA.