Infanta will be last to appear in court

THE Infanta Cristina will be the last of the 18 people charged in the Noos case to testify before the court. 

If she is not exonerated before the trial begins in January, she may be called as a witness.

Questioning will start in February with Jose Luis Ballester, the former Director General for Sports. It is expected to last until June with 66 sessions from Tuesdays to Fridays. 

It was decided in June the King’s sister would be on the bench with her husband, Iñaki Urdangarin, making her the first direct relative of a King of Spain to go to trial. 

The royal son-in-law is facing 19-and-a-half years in prison for allegedly diverting €6 million of public funds from the Noos Institute, a non-profit consultancy which billed regional governments more than €5 million to promote sport and tourism. 

He is charged with influence peddling, diverting funds, embezzlement, fraud, falsehood, crimes against the tax department and money laundering. 

Emails revealed in court by Torres suggest that Cristina was involved in its management.