The Sección 10 of the Audiencia de Barcelona halted the criminal proceedings against the accused described as maestro iluminado on 28 September 2026 because of a procedural error and referred the case back to the competent Juzgado de Instrucción . According to the court, the case had been assigned to the wrong procedural route, so parts of the proceedings to date were declared void.
Specifically, the court objected that the charges had been brought before the procedimiento abreviado , even though the sentences sought by the Fiscalía indicated that the sumario ordinario should apply. The decision suspends the start of the main hearing in Barcelona ; the investigating court must now remedy formal defects and order the necessary steps afresh. The ruling makes no statement about the substantive merits of the allegations.
The man is accused of several offences against five women who allegedly sought him out during emotionally difficult periods in their lives. The charges include sexual abuse, degrading treatment and bodily harm. According to media reports, prosecutors had sought a total prison sentence of around 70 years. The accused was arrested provisionally following a complaint in 2021. The alleged offences are said to be connected with activities as a purported healer or spiritual leader; regional media reports refer to a link with the municipality of Pobla de Lillet . No final finding of guilt has been made.
The return of the case file to the instrucción stage has practical consequences: the formal classification of the proceedings must be corrected, affecting deadlines and the taking of evidence and delaying the scheduling of a new main hearing. Legal commentary stresses that correcting the type of proceedings and jurisdiction does not prejudge the substantive examination, but is essential to the validity of any subsequent judgments.
The court has not published statements from those involved. The review now pending before the Juzgado de Instrucción will have to determine whether the charges can proceed under the appropriate procedural route or need to be restructured in part. Until a new decision to open proceedings is made, the case remains at an interim stage; further substantive decisions are expected only after the corrected preliminary examination is complete.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).