DUKE OF PALMA COULD HAVE PROPERTIES EMBARGOED

However, they will not go to prison but will likely have properties embargoed.
If neither Iñaki Urdangarin nor his former business partner Diego Torres pointed out any specific property, court officials will set a probe to fix which properties would be enough to cover the bail.

It is understood that that process began yesterday with judicial investigators literally collating a list of what each of the two men own and how much money they have to their names.

Should their bank accounts be embargoed as part of the process, that would affect the Duchess of Palma who apparently has joint accounts with her husband.

The Pedralbes Palace in Barcelona, home to the Duke and Duchess before the scandal broke have since moved out of in order to rent out the house they had renovated at great expense, is worth almost six million euros, and could be one of the properties embargoed. A court source said that no assets would be seized immediately however. “His private mansion will not be seized tomorrow. It is a slow process,” she said.
Earlier this week the Duke's lawyer Pascual Vives said he might ask Spain's Constitutional Court to call off the investigation on the grounds that Urdangarin has not been able to defend himself properly.

Neither Iñaki Urdangarin nor Diego Torres have been charged with a crime, but are suspects in a case in which they allegedly funneled about 5 million euros in public funds to companies they controlled. In a court document, investigating magistrate Judge Jose Castro said Urdangarin and former partner Diego Torres “ignored the rules of public contracting as long as they achieved their aim, which was no other than to divert public funds for their own benefit or that of others.” He said the two agreed to make as much as possible out of Urdangarin's relationship with the Royal Palace in their dealings with public and private entities.

Urdangarin is a former professional and Olympic handball medalist and the deals he landed were for things such as organising seminars on using sports as a tourism lure.

Urdangarin comes from a wealthy Basque family but is not nobility; he became Duke of Palma because Cristina is Duchess of Palma.
The royal family decided last year to sideline him from all official royal activities, and last week removed him from the family website. He has since been asked by Palma City Council not to use his title in public or society.

The far left want him stripped of the title all together while the street named in honour of their marriage in 1997 is to be reverted to its original name la Rambla.

According to Palma council, the steps have been taken in response to the indignation apparently felt by the people of Palma over the alleged corruption scandal.