The highest judicial body has upheld the sentence from the Provincial Court of Las Palmas, which found it proven that the accused received the money with the promise of organizing a coronation ceremony within the Yoruba religion in Cuba. After the trip was suspended due to the pandemic, the man never returned the sum to the victim.
The victim, who had a close relationship of trust with the defendant, considering him her spiritual godfather, handed over various cash sums between January and February 2020, totaling 11,000 euros. According to the woman's testimony during the trial, the accused insisted on the necessity of the coronation in Cuba, even telling her that "if I didn't go to Cuba to save myself, I was going to die."
The Provincial Court granted "full credibility" to the victim's version, supported by other testimonies that confirmed the money transfer and the relationship of dependence and trust. The convicted man admitted receiving the funds but claimed they were used for prior rituals and other expenses, without providing documentation or justifying the final destination of the amounts.
The original sentence, issued in November 2022, convicted the accused as the perpetrator of a crime of embezzlement aggravated by abuse of trust. He was sentenced to two years in prison, a fine of 3,000 euros, disqualification from passive suffrage during the sentence, and ordered to compensate the victim with the 11,000 euros that were taken and never returned.
Both the Superior Court of Justice of Canarias and the Supreme Court dismissed the defense's appeals. The Supreme Court emphasized that the money was given for a specific purpose that was not fulfilled and that the defendant's conduct was facilitated by his "moral and spiritual superiority" over the victim, which led to the aggravating factor of abuse of trust.
