A Spanish court on Monday banned Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's wife from leaving the country in connection with a corruption case against her, Reuters reported.
Sánchez's wife, Begoña Gomez, has been under investigation for two years on suspicion of taking advantage of her husband's position to secure funding for a master's program she was running. Gomez was formally charged with corruption on April 13 this year.
Far-right groups are demanding that Sanchez's wife receive a sentence of at least 24 years in prison on charges of embezzlement of public funds. Gomez denies any wrongdoing.
Judge Juan Carlos Peinado ordered the prime minister's wife to surrender her passport on Monday, banning her from leaving Spain. Gomez will also have to appear in court twice a month.
There are several other corruption investigations involving Sanchez that are on the verge of trial or are already in the trial phase. The Spanish prime minister is not named in any of the cases.
Sanchez, one of Europe's few left-wing prime ministers, has said the trials are part of a campaign to remove him from office.
Several close allies of Sanchez are under investigation for corruption related to public works projects, oil and gas contracts, and the supply of masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Those under investigation include the third-highest-ranking politician in the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, Santos Cerdán, and a former right-hand man of Sanchez and former transport minister, José Luis Abalos. They also deny any wrongdoing.
Spain's Supreme Court said in May it was investigating former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero on charges that he ran a "network that profited from lobbying public authorities for third parties, including the airline Plus Ultra Líneas Aéreas." Zapatero has also denied the allegations.