Hat Bar, Palma. | Ultima Hora

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A Palma Police Officer has been charged with allegedly leaking the report about the President of the Balearic Government, Francina Armengol drinking in a bar after hours last year.

The accused was reportedly asked to give a statement at Police Headquarters in the presence of his lawyer.

Two Local Police were deployed to the Hat Bar in Palma at 0200 on October 7-8 last year in response to numerous complaints from residents. On arrival, they found 9 people inside the bar and President Armengol admitted that she had been drinking gin and tonics in the bar, although according to witnesses she was not inside the premises when the Officers arrived.

In the Police Report about the incident the bar owner declared his objection to being sanctioned, insisting that he only stayed open because President Armengol was there.

Warning

Hours after the incident involving President Armengol, the Palma Local Police Chief José Luis Carque issued a warning on the Police website threatening to impose severe sanctions on those who leaked information.

"Members of the Security Forces and Corps must conform in their professional performance to the principles of hierarchy and subordination,” said Carque. “The omission of the obligation to account for the superiority of any matter requiring its knowledge is described as a serious or very serious misconduct in the regulations of the disciplinary regime."

According to the Police Investigation a number of people had access to the Incident Report, including Police Officers, Administrative Staff, Cleaning Staff, and trusted officials

The fact that the President of the Government was caught drinking in a bar after hours during the coronavirus pandemic caused a massive media storm at local and national level.