The trial of seven former leaders of the iDental group continued this week as prosecutors questioned the amount and scope of alleged fraud. According to the case, more than 23 million euros were diverted from Social Security between 2015 and 2018. The funds were reportedly redirected from business activities into personal accounts and real estate purchases, all while the group faced outstanding debts related to its social security obligations.
The National Court resumed proceedings on Wednesday, examining the top executives of the dental clinics and laboratories network. The prosecutor has requested prison terms ranging from three to six years and fines that could reach up to 3.5 million euros, with total compensation to Social Security surpassing 34 million euros for the defrauded amounts, plus additional fees and interest.
Police investigators, who described themselves as specialists, noted that the group had not been contributing to Social Security since its founding in 2015 by the founders of the clinics and dental workshops. Antonio Javier Garcia Pellicer and Vicente Castañer Blascountil reportedly sold the business in 2017.
The investigation also indicated that after the group’s acquisition by the defendants, defaults continued during the 2017-2018 period. The testimony included mentions of Luis Sans Huecas and the Garrido Lopez brothers, Jose Maria and Juan, along with Jose Luis Gonzalez Sánchez and Domingo Bejarano Calabuig, who were identified as precursors to the earlier managers in the operation of the companies.
Data from more than twenty provincial Social Security offices was cited by one of the police officers who prepared the expert report. He stated that in the second phase, the group ceased paying an average of one million euros per month to Social Security.
Experts noted that the defendants controlled a complex framework consisting of more than fifty companies across Spain, which made it difficult for the Social Security General Treasury to pursue debts from those responsible who should have covered social security contributions for a large number of workers.
They added that the defendants allegedly sought to delay payments to Social Security and, when seizures were imposed on company accounts, they moved assets and bought real estate by transferring funds to individual accounts and pausing embargoes on the group’s accounts.
One police officer commented, “This business structure and its instrumental use drew our attention. In a context of payment delays, the group continued to spend large sums on advertising while workers’ social security benefits remained unpaid.”
The hearing, which focuses on the iDental ex-cupolas for a crime against Social Security, forms part of a broader case still pending, including alleged fraud and other charges. Tens of thousands of people were affected after the group closed its 24 centers.
In this Wednesday’s session, two former employees of Associated Dental Institutes, the IOA group acquired in 2015 by the defendants, testified as witnesses. One witness is a dentist who served as medical director of a group clinic from 2015 to 2018 and recalled irregularities at the final stage, including forced cash payments from patients whose dataphones were withdrawn, with a company representative collecting cash on a weekly basis.
Another former head within the group’s Operations area stated that Social Security payments began on time and then became irregular, suggesting an intent to rectify the issue when a deferral was requested, though the speaker believed it would not be honored.
Additionally, a female administrative employee at a clinic in Alicante reported that the group requested a deferral of Social Security payments in 2016.