Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont has managed to flee Spain and is heading to Belgium despite a heavy police presence and an arrest warrant, prompting accusations from security officials who apologized on Friday.
His plan is to continue his work from the Belgian town of Waterloo, Jordi Turull, secretary general of Puigdemont’s Together for Catalonia (Junts per Catalunya, or Junts) party, told Catalan radio station RAC1.
Puigdemont had been in Barcelona since Tuesday night, he said.
After a short speech, Puigdemont managed to flee, despite a large police contingent trying to arrest him on Thursday.
Earlier, Puigdemont’s lawyer had said he was “outside the Spanish state”.
Lawyer Gonzalo Boye would not say whether Puigdemont has since returned to Belgium, where he spent most of his nearly seven-year exile.
Puigdemont will address the public soon, Boye said.
Puigdemont attempted to lead Catalonia to independence in 2017 in a referendum that was declared illegal. He then fled the country, hiding in a car, and spent most of his time in exile in Belgium. He was later also stationed in the south of France.
Catalan police, who had to arrest Puigdemont, were taken by surprise because they did not expect him to disappear immediately after his speech, they said at a press conference.
Puigdemont had indicated in advance that he wanted to be present at the election of the pro-Spanish socialist Salvador Illa as the new leader of the region’s parliament.
However, after speaking, Puigdemont escaped in a white car, reports said. Two police officers were later arrested on suspicion of aiding his escape.
Catalan police leadership has acknowledged that Puigdemont’s arrest in Barcelona was a failure.
At the same time, Chief Commissioner Eduard Sallent called for understanding for the actions of the security forces.
Sallent said on Thursday that the main objectives were to maintain public order and secure the election of a new leader of the Catalan government in parliament in Barcelona. These tasks had been fulfilled.
He said further investigations were needed into the reasons why Puigdemont’s arrest was unsuccessful.
Sallent confirmed that police had planned for Puigdemont to go to parliament on Thursday, as he had repeatedly announced, and why officers were stationed there. “This seemed to us the most favorable place for an arrest,” Sallent said.
But after his four-minute speech, Puigdemont was driven away in a waiting vehicle behind the podium. “It all happened very quickly and our agents could not intervene because of a wall of people,” Sallent said.
During his brief appearance, Puigdemont was accompanied by representatives of the state, parliament and many sympathizers. According to him, these measures are an additional obstacle to intervention.
Two police officers also helped Puigdemont, who was later arrested.
Catalan Interior Minister Joan Ignasi Elena strongly criticized the Spanish judiciary, calling it an “abnormal situation” for a judge to refuse to apply an amnesty law to the people it was intended for, she said during the press conference.
Spain has an amnesty for separatists, but there is still an arrest warrant for Puigdemont. He was accused in 2017 by investigating judge Pablo Llarena of embezzlement, a crime exempt from the amnesty.
Investigating judge Llarena is now demanding clarification from the police about how Puigdemont was able to escape.
Earlier, Puigdemont said he was “healthy, safe and, above all, free,” Lluís Llach, a Catalan singer-songwriter and leader of the separatist civic movement Catalan National Assembly (ANC), said in a post on the social media platform X.
He said Puigdemont had asked him to deliver this message, but he did not say where he was or what he planned to do.
Earlier, lawyer Boye appeared to downplay Puigdemont’s return, his brief speech to thousands of supporters in Barcelona and his subsequent disappearance, despite the heavy police presence.
Boye described it as a normal workday. “He finished his political work and went home after his work was done, like everyone does,” he told reporters, without revealing where “home” is.
He also said that Puigdemont would “never surrender”.
