They made “false publications knowing they were false.” A court in León has sentenced two far-right activists for linking without evidence the secretary general of the PSOE of León and national deputy, Javier Alfonso Cendón, to the alleged corruption scheme led by the former socialist Bernardo Fuentes Curbelo, known as Tito Berni in the mediator case being investigated in the Canary Islands. The judge imposes a six-month prison sentence on Alberto Royuela Fernández and Juan Martínez Grasa — from the YouTube channel Expediente Royuela — as “responsible authors of a crime of slander with publicity and a crime of insult.” And orders them to pay compensation of 2,000 euros plus interest. “Justice has been done,” Cendón posted on his X account.
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The sentence, previewed by El Periódico and accessed by EL PAÍS, comes three years after the episode and following a plea agreement reached — just before the trial — by the two accused and the Prosecutor’s Office with Cendón’s approval. “They have accepted a six-month prison sentence and have acknowledged, without hesitation, that they made it all up,” the socialist emphasized in his post.
It was in the months prior to the campaign for the May 2023 municipal elections when the two convicted — through their YouTube channel — linked Cendón to Tito Berni’s scheme. They claimed that, along with two other socialist deputies, he had participated in lavish dinners at a Madrid restaurant where the mediator case was being plotted, surrounded by “prostitutes” and “cocaine.” They also said that the leader had money “outside Spain,” in a tax haven to evade taxes. That video had 3,360 views in the first 16 hours.
The Criminal Court Number 2 of León concludes that the dissemination of those “false publications” damaged Cendón’s image and right to honor. In addition to the prison sentence and compensation, the judge orders the accused to publish the sentence by which they are now convicted on the same YouTube channel where they launched their insults and slanders.
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Justice has been done.
Three years ago, a group of far-right ultras falsely accused several deputies, including us, of participating in the so-called “Tito Berni” scheme. They even claimed we had bank accounts abroad.
This week the… pic.twitter.com/fcrmheTHkM
— Javier Alfonso Cendón (@alfonsocendon) May 1, 2026
The leader of the socialists in León regrets that in the last three years he has had to “live with infamy,” with “a fabricated accusation” and with “the unjust harm of those who” tried to “demolish” his name, his career, and his honor. “Where are those who pointed fingers so lightly now? Who repairs the damage caused? Who restores the honor questioned during three years of noise and suspicion?” Cendón celebrates that, in his case, this sentence serves to repair what was experienced, but he reminds that “not everyone has the capacity to endure until the end against an organized lie to destroy the opponent.”
“That is why it is worth saying it loud and clear: not everything is allowed in politics,” emphasized the deputy, who insists that “trying to destroy personal life to gain political advantage is the lowest form of opposition.” Socialist sources express the same view and maintain that with this sentence “something essential is demonstrated,” that “against organized lies, the truth always ends up prevailing.”
