Two police officers have been sentenced to 9 and 6 months in prison for assaulting a detainee in Tudela

The Navarra High Court has sentenced the two officers of the Foral Police to 9 and 6 months' imprisonment for assaulting a detainee in the dungeons of the Tudela police station on 12 February 2025. The court has acquitted a third officer , who has held the Navarre Government responsible for subsidiary civil liability .

The sentence proves that one of the officers shook, beat and punched the detainee in the face, and that the second policeman was punished for failing to prevent the attack, even though "he could and the assailant needed it".

The sentence holds theprincipal accused responsible for a crime against moral integrity  and a minor offence of injury, for which he is sentenced to 9 months' imprisonment and a fine of 600 euros, and the other officer is charged with an offence against moral integrity for omission and sentenced to 6 months' imprisonment, and both have been disqualified from employment or public office for 3 and 2 years respectively.

The victim went to the emergency services the following day and was diagnosed with various injuries, including a hematoma on the bridge of the nose, wear and tear on the knees and back. The officer who carried out the attack must compensate him with 350 euros for injuries and 3,500 euros for after-effects, while the two convicts must jointly pay him another 4,000 euros for moral damage.

According to the ruling, the person who received the highest sentence (he entered the cell, beat the detainee repeatedly, dragged him and locked him in the ground) acted as an "act of arbitrary domination and abuse of power" and violated his physical and moral integrity. The court has stressed that the situation also had an element of humiliation, as the detainee was unprotected.

The judges point out that it has not been established that the victim had previously insulted or threatened the officer, and that, in any event, no conduct would justify such a reaction. Although they acknowledge that the assailant showed a defiant attitude even after his arrest, they point out that other officers intervened professionally and managed to bring the situation back on track.

The second convict has worked there for 26 years, and the Court finds it proven that he saw blows without intervening or asking for help, even though he had the capacity to do so, but has acquitted the third officer on the grounds that he had no real capacity to prevent events with 25 days' experience.

The judgement is not final and may be appealed to the High Court of Justice of Navarre.