Judith Martínez Gámez, the Commercial Director of Madrid’s Hipódromo de la Zarzuela, submitted her resignation on Thursday following reports that connected her to meetings between former PSOE Organization Secretary Santos Cerdán and several business figures. Her resignation was confirmed this morning, as first reported by The Objective and later verified by El Debate. As of today, Martínez is no longer part of the staff at the public company, which is managed by SEPI under the Spanish Ministry of Finance.
The departure takes place following reports that Santos Cerdán—now in custody awaiting trial due to his suspected involvement in a significant corruption scandal linked to the PSOE—utilized a private dining area at La Cantina inside the Hipódromo to conduct confidential discussions with business figures. One of the recent gatherings included Ernesto Gasco, a former top advisor at Moncloa and an aide of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. Both Gasco and Martínez had earlier been employed at the High Commissioner’s Office for the Battle Against Child Poverty.
According to internal sources at the Hipódromo, this private space was a preferred meeting location for Cerdán due to its discretion, offering privacy away from political scrutiny—though not from the attention of investigators. The longstanding personal and professional ties between Cerdán, Judith Martínez, and her partner, businessman Óscar Arizcuren (a former UPN leader), have raised red flags over potential conflicts of interest and the use of public institutions for private networking.
Cerdán and Arizcuren first met over a decade ago while serving in the regional Parliament of Navarra and have maintained a close relationship since. In 2023, both Ernesto Gasco and Judith Martínez transitioned from the High Commissioner’s Office to the leadership of the Hipódromo—Gasco as president, Martínez as commercial director. Martínez also brought in a close friend from Navarra to serve as her personal secretary.
Meanwhile, Arizcuren, a public servant at AENA, reportedly benefited from Cerdán’s political influence, allowing him to avoid remote assignments and retain a high-paying position in Madrid. In 2021, Cerdán allegedly played a key role in his appointment as Director of Institutional Relations and European Public Affairs at AENA, a position with a salary exceeding €120,000 per year. During that time, Arizcuren and Martínez moved into an upscale apartment near El Retiro Park, which also serves as the registered address of multiple private companies.
The controversy has sparked outrage from opposition parties. The Partido Popular (PP) has called for the immediate suspension of any severance or compensation to Cerdán following his imprisonment and demanded full transparency regarding the use of public facilities and politically motivated appointments.
The unfolding scandal continues to expose a network of personal favors, institutional influence, and misuse of public resources that is casting a long shadow over the inner circle of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.