Phoenix 24
The explosive allegation now moves into Spain’s courts.
MADRID, SPAIN — July 2026. Venezuelan acting president Delcy Rodríguez has launched legal action in Spain against businessman Víctor de Aldama, demanding that he retract his claim that she personally handed him a confidential envelope from state oil company PDVSA. Aldama has linked the document to an alleged oil allocation intended to irregularly finance Spain’s Socialist Workers’ Party, the PSOE, and the Socialist International. Rodríguez denies the accusation and argues that the businessman has publicly attributed false conduct to her. The confrontation adds a new legal dimension to one of the most politically sensitive allegations surrounding the broader Koldo corruption case.
Rodríguez’s attorneys have filed a request for a conciliation hearing before the Madrid courts, the procedural step required before pursuing a criminal complaint for alleged defamation. Her defense is being handled by Ilocad, the law firm led by former Spanish judge Baltasar Garzón, who has maintained a close professional relationship with the Venezuelan official. The hearing is scheduled for July 16 and will seek a formal acknowledgment from Aldama that his account is false, followed by a public retraction. However, people close to the businessman have indicated that he has no intention of withdrawing his statements.
The dispute centers on television interviews broadcast on February 4 and 5, during which Aldama identified Rodríguez as the person who allegedly delivered the PDVSA envelope. According to his version, the document contained information about an oil quota whose proceeds would ultimately benefit the PSOE and the Socialist International through an irregular financing mechanism. The businessman also repeated the allegation during appearances before Spain’s National Court in January and March and reportedly submitted the envelope to judicial authorities. This means the accusation is no longer confined to media statements but has also entered the evidentiary framework of an ongoing investigation.
The envelope reportedly carries confidential PDVSA markings and was addressed to Rodríguez when she served as Venezuela’s vice president, although its existence does not independently prove who delivered it or whether the alleged financing plan was executed. The document had previously surfaced during an investigation conducted by Spain’s Civil Guard, increasing scrutiny over Aldama’s testimony and his connections with political and business figures. Rodríguez’s legal strategy directly challenges the credibility of his account and seeks to prevent the allegation from becoming accepted as an established fact. Aldama’s associates, meanwhile, describe the action as an attempt to discourage him from continuing his cooperation with Spanish investigators.
The July 16 hearing is unlikely to resolve the wider questions surrounding the envelope, the alleged oil allocation or possible financial links between Venezuela and Spanish political organizations. Its immediate purpose will be to determine whether Aldama retracts his accusation or whether Rodríguez proceeds with a formal criminal complaint for defamation. If no agreement is reached, the dispute could advance into a broader judicial battle involving testimony, documentary evidence and the precise circumstances under which the envelope reached Spanish authorities. Until those elements are examined by the courts, the alleged financing operation remains an accusation under investigation rather than a judicially established fact.
The envelope controversy has now become a courtroom battle.