Zapatero's alleged front man failed to file taxes for four years

The 'computer error' that left Julito Martínez off the tax radar

Spain's tax agency has admitted what many of its own AEAT staff already suspected: the tax control system failed in a suspicious way with Julito Martínez, the alleged front man of former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. As former director general Soledad Fernández admitted in the Senate on 14 July 2026, Martínez failed to file his income tax return for three consecutive years and the computer system never detected it. The official excuse: a computer error.

Four years without paying tax while moving millions

The data that has come to light paints a hole that is hard to explain. Martínez was listed as the administrator of 39 companies, with declared income of just 50,000 euros a year, yet handled million-euro flows linked to gold and oil businesses with Venezuela. Internal AEAT sources quoted by El Español-Invertia say that "if his name never came up in four years, someone took him off the list." Meanwhile, the tax agency peine three million inspection proceedings against other taxpayers.

A stark contrast with the ordinary taxpayer

The double standard has sparked a wave of outrage. While self-employed workers and individuals describe how the agency hounds them over differences of cents or deadlines missed by hours, Martínez's case shows absolute tolerance. "They hit you with a parallel inspection because a payer reported 500 euros in December and you declared them in January," anonymous voices from the sector complain. The contrast is brutal: the system is relentless with the small taxpayer and blind to those close to power.

White lists or systemic failure?

The experts consulted are divided. On one side are those who believe the "computer error" covers up a deliberate manipulation of databases — the infamous "white lists" that exclude certain taxpayers from automatic cross-checks. On the other, those who point to structural corruption that allows senior officials to shut down inconvenient investigations. The full calculation of undeclared income, broken down year by year by sources close to the case, comes to a figure exceeding half a million euros in evaded tax.

A case that remains unresolved

Soledad Fernández's dismissal has not calmed the waters. The resignation has not been accompanied by a clear incivil investigation, and the deeper tremors at the top of the AEAT — including other cascading resignations — suggest the case has ramifications reaching the Finance Ministry. If the courts do not dig deeper, the scandal will become another stain on the institution's credibility. But there are those who bet that this time the noise will be enough to set the wheels in motion.