Operacion Puerto: Fuentes Verdict Casts Dark Shadow over Spain’s ‘Golden Era’

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: April 30, 2013

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In most of the free world, destruction of evidence is a crime. In Spain, apparently, there are exceptions.

On Tuesday, a Spanish court sentenced Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes to a one-year suspended prison term for endangering public health. He will also pay a fine of €15 per day for the next 10 months and will be barred from involvement in sports medicine for four years—although his suspension will not prevent him from general practice. All of Fuentes' computers and some 200 blood bags used as evidence in his trial will—barring an appeal—be destroyed.

In other words, the doctor who has been repeatedly accused of involvement in doping in cycling, tennis and football among other sports has been convicted of a minor offense, will pay a paltry fine and will not see a day of jail time. Any evidence that could at a later time be used against him or the athletes and associations with which he worked will be destroyed.

If this doesn't reek of cover-up, see a doctor.

Fuentes' investigation, known as "Operacion Puerto," was suspicious from an early stage. After a 2004 interview in which Jesus Manzano admitted to doping in his cycling team, Spanish authorities arrested Fuentes among several other doctors, seizing anabolic steroids, blood bags and machines used to manipulate athletes' blood. More than 50 cyclists were accused. Some admitted guilt, and many others were acquitted.



But, although Fuentes claimed in 2006 to have worked with football and tennis players among others, Spanish authorities never investigated his work outside of cycling. Moreover, although the convicted doctor offered to reveal the names of all his clients during his trial, judge Julia Santamaria insisted this was unnecessary on the basis that it would violate doctor-patient confidentiality. Once the evidence is destroyed, the world will never have proof of the true extent of Fuentes' involvement in sport.
Article Source: Bleacher Report - International Football

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