Prime mover behind Spanish anthem protest gets €7,200 fine
Madrid’s Audiencia Nacional has found Santiago Espot guilty of two counts of outrage and affront to the Crown
BarcelonaThe main judge of Madrid’s Audiencia Nacional criminal court has sentenced Santiago Espot, the president of Catalan pro-independence platform Catalunya Acció, to pay a €7,200 fine for having masterminded the booing of the Spanish national anthem at the Spanish King’s Cup final in 2015. Judge Vázquez Honrubia has found Espot guilty of two counts of outrage against Spain and affront to the Crown.
According to Madrid daily El País, the Spanish judge has ruled that the Facebook posts on May 28, 2015 by the leader of Catalunya Acció are not protected by free speech or the freedom to spread thoughts, ideas and opinions. In his messages Santiago Espot encouraged Barcelona FC fans to massively boo the Spanish king and anthem during the football Cup final.
Espot has been sentenced to pay a 12-month fine, which is equivalent to a daily sum of €20 or €7,200 in total.
