The owner of the well-known La Chasnera gas station is on trial for money laundering.

In Tenerife, businessman José Miguel González, the owner of several gas stations, including the well-known La Chasnera, is on trial. This gas station became famous for once selling many winning lottery tickets for Christmas.

González is accused of money laundering and obstruction of justice. The case concerns his purchase of several plots of land and a gas station in the town of Arafo. Prosecutors believe that he knew about the sellers' debts and took advantage of this to buy the property at a reduced price.

Bienvenido Valenzuela, who was previously convicted of fraud involving the same property, is also involved in this case. González assures that he was not aware of the debts and did not collude with anyone.

Prosecutors are seeking an 8-year prison sentence and €1.7 million in compensation for González. They claim that he colluded with Valenzuela to buy the gas station, land, and water extraction company in Arafo, knowing about their debts.

The seller of the property says that he did not want to profit, but only to pay off his company's debts and remove the mortgage from his house. He also sold the water extraction company to cover debts.

In 2017, Valenzuela was already tried for this deal and sentenced to 4 years in prison for fraud. He was also ordered to pay €1.6 million in compensation, but he did not do so because he declared bankruptcy. The seller claims that he has still not received money from either Valenzuela or González.

According to the documents, Valenzuela was supposed to buy not only the land and real estate, but also companies with wage, tax, and mortgage debts. The only asset of these companies was the land under the gas station and the mortgaged house.

But Valenzuela did not pay the seller or pay off the debts. Just three months later, he resold the property to Inversiones Atogo, which is managed by González. Prosecutors believe that this was done to avoid paying off debts, and that González was in collusion with Valenzuela from the beginning.

The trial of González has resumed after a break. González's lawyer insists that the case should be closed because it has already been heard before. He also claims that his client's rights have been violated, as González previously appeared in the case as a witness, and now he is accused of crimes. Prosecutors object to this.

The judges took a break to discuss the defense's demands and decided to continue the hearing.

Valenzuela stated that he wanted to make money from reselling the property. He claims that the seller himself gave him González's number. According to him, he initially sold González the real estate and half of the water extraction company, and then the other half. He admitted that he was supposed to pay off the companies' debts, but he did not, for which he is serving a sentence.

González said that he met with Valenzuela and he offered him to buy the gas station, land, and shares of the water extraction company. He checked the documents and assured that the gas station was in poor condition and needed a lot of investment to restore it. According to him, he still cannot get a license to open it. González claims that he paid for the property and invested money in the gas station, but never made a profit.

The seller of the property, Carlos Curbelo, said that he opened the gas station back in 1987. Due to debts, he wanted to get rid of everything, even without profit. According to him, Valenzuela quickly offered to buy the property and even offered to stay on as manager.

When he went to the notary to formalize the sale of the water extraction company, he saw González there, which surprised him. He claims that González knew about the company's debts because he himself had offered to buy it from him earlier, but he refused, considering the price too high.

The trial continues. Another witness is scheduled to be heard the next day.