Judge denies Real Madrid's request to extend Negreira investigation

The judge overseeing the investigation into the payments made by FC Barcelona to José María Enriquez Negreira, former vice president of the Technical Committee of Referees, has rejected Real Madrid's request to extend the investigation by six additional months. However, she has not concluded the investigation yet, due to two testimonies scheduled for next November, according to the Spanish news agency "EFE".

EFE reported that a judge from Court of Investigation No. 1 in Barcelona has rejected, in a judicial decision, Real Madrid's request, which was supported by the public prosecutor, to extend the investigation for another six months, after the last extension period ended on September 1. The case concerns payments amounting to €7.3 million made by FC Barcelona to Negreira and his son Javier between 2001 and 2018.

The judge sees that extending the investigation is not necessary despite the existence of two testimonies scheduled for November, one from former FC Barcelona B player and coach Gerard López, and the other from the former representative of the B team. In her decision dated August 10, she stated that the testimonies were scheduled before the end of the last extension period, which ended on September 1.

The judge also noted that there is no need to extend the investigation period while waiting for the Barcelona court's decision regarding the investigation procedures requested by Real Madrid, which the judge rejected. She clarified that if the court supports the royal club's request, these procedures will not be invalid even if they are carried out after the investigation period has ended.

Real Madrid had requested on July 14 an extension of the investigation for an additional six months, considering that the results of the detailed investigation conducted by the Civil Guard during the investigation phase include elements and direct evidence and solid indications of the commission of an ongoing sports corruption crime.