Supreme Court Ruling on Military Absence
The Supreme Court has imposed a significant penalty on a soldier from the Army after he failed to report to his authorized residence and military assignment for over a year. Instead, he resided in Morocco without the necessary permissions or oversight from his superiors. The Military Chamber of the High Court dismissed his appeal, resulting in two ten-month prison sentences, along with the suspension of his military employment and special disqualification from holding public office or voting.
This soldier had initially been granted residency in Melilla following a medical leave due to a traffic accident. However, from July of that year onwards, he ceased attending medical check-ups and neglected to respond to communications from his unit. Efforts were made to contact him via telephone and certified mail, but these attempts to reach him at his residence were unsuccessful.
Shortly after his disappearance, the soldier sent medical reports from Morocco in French via WhatsApp, claiming to have had an accident in that country. However, he failed to provide any documentation that would authorize his departure from national territory or explain his failure to maintain communication with his military unit. After another personal leave he had requested in November 2023, he did not return, remaining in an irregular status outside of military control until December 2024, when he belatedly regularized his situation.
It was eventually revealed that he had been residing in Nador, Morocco, without any military oversight and without providing his address. Furthermore, the ruling noted that during this time, he made several entries and exits from the Nador International Airport and even traveled to Germany, indicating that there were no physical or medical constraints preventing him from traveling or fulfilling his military obligations. Throughout this period, attempts at judicial summons and locating him proved unsuccessful, leading to his eventual detention and appearance before his unit. In his defense, a psychiatric report from the Gómez Ulla Central Defense Hospital was presented, stating he suffered from an anxious adjustment disorder, but it was not established that this condition absolved him of his criminal responsibility.
The judicial process began with a ruling from the Second Territorial Military Court in Seville, which sentenced him in December 2025. His defense appealed to the Supreme Court, citing errors in evidence evaluation, improper application of the Military Penal Code, and lack of consideration for personal circumstances. Upon review, the Supreme Court concluded that neither the medical reports nor the defense's claims justified the prolonged absence or exempted him from his military obligations. With the resolution issued on May 13, 2026, the original ruling was upheld, and the costs of the appeal were declared at the court's discretion.
As reported by infobae.com.
