Spain's chief prosecutor quits after leak verdict

Spain's chief prosecutor said on Monday he was resigning after the Supreme Court last week found him guilty of leaking confidential information in a case involving a leading opposition figure's partner.

The unprecedented case is a blow to the leftist coalition government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who appointed Alvaro Garcia Ortiz in 2022 and has repeatedly defended his innocence.

In a letter seen by Reuters, Garcia Ortiz said his decision to step down, before the sentence banning him from his post for two years, came from "profound respect" for judicial rulings.

"Though my decision stems directly from the ruling, I'm convinced that I've faithfully served the institution to which I am honoured to belong, with an unequivocal vocation for public service, a sense of duty and institutional loyalty," read the letter to Justice Minister Felix Bolaños.

His departure was widely expected even as the Supreme Court has yet to give its rationale for the verdict and Garcia Ortiz may still appeal it before Spain's Constitutional Court and ultimately, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

"We respect the court's decision but do not agree with it," government spokesperson Pilar Alegria told state broadcaster TVE after Garcia Ortiz's resignation, adding the lack of unanimity and notifying the verdict without a full ruling set a worrying precedent and had generated "stupefaction" among the public.