The director of the board of trustees of Spain’s Alhambra palace is under investigation for alleged embezzlement of public funds at the top tourist site.
Interior ministry official Santiago Lopez said Alhambra director Maria del Mar Villafranca was detained on Thursday and brought in for questioning. She was later released, but remains under investigation.
Villafranca and four other board officials are said to be suspected of misappropriating public money assigned for contracting visitor audio guide systems for the palace, which is in the mountains on the outskirts of the southern city of Granada.
Villafranca told reporters she would immediately resign from her position if she ended up being named as an official suspect in the investigation.
“The board has acted with absolute integrity, transparency and a sense of responsibility,” she said, before refusing to answer any further questions on the case.
Considered a gem of Muslim architecture, the royal residence of Alhambra (the name means “the red” in Arabic) was completed in the 14th century and is enclosed by huge, fortified walls. Now a Unesco world heritage site, it is Spain’s most visited tourist attraction, receiving thousands of visitors every day.
