Sumith Prasad
Netflix’s Spanish series ‘Bank Under Siege’ depicts the rise of Lieutenant Colonel Emilio Alonso Manglano, who becomes the new head of the Spanish intelligence agency Centro Superior de Información de la Defensa (CESID). The crime drama portrays Manglano as a mighty figure who does what he wants, irrespective of his position in the military hierarchy. He also played an important role in shaping the ideology and actions of José Juan Martínez Gómez, who set out to rob the Central Bank of Barcelona with a gang of local criminals. In reality, Manglano was a highly controversial figure whose legacy or notoriety is beyond the events depicted in the series. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Emilio Alonso Manglano Revolutionized Spanish Intelligence
In 1981, the same year in which José Juan Martínez Gómez and his gang orchestrated a heist in the Central Bank of Barcelona after holding around three hundred individuals as hostages, Emilio Alonso Manglano became the head of the Centro Superior de Información de la Defensa (CESID). Even though José alleged that the military officer was really the mastermind behind the robbery, as ‘Bank Under Siege’ portrays, the latter was never prosecuted in relation to the case. The claims the convicted robber raised against Manglano remain unsolved even today. While many in Spain have accepted these allegations, several others have questioned José’s credibility.
The Central Bank robbery didn’t affect Manglano or his career in any way. The antagonistic portrayal of the military officer in the crime drama series can only be approached as an unverified account for now. No journalist or police officer has come forward to implicate the CESID head in the crime after getting threatened by him. He remained in power for over a decade and turned around his agency with several reforms. Between 1984 and 1985, under his leadership, CESID formed alliances with several other intelligence agencies, which were integral during the later years of the Cold War.
Manglano was the first Western intelligence director to visit the KGB headquarters before the disintegration of the Soviet Union. The relationship CESID fostered with the Soviet agency was crucial when the Cold War intensified in Europe with discussions concerning the arrival of strategic missiles from the United States on the continent. Under his leadership, the agency also cooperated with its counterparts in countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, France, Israel, Iran, and Iraq. His career was piqued when Spain hosted the Madrid Conference of 1991, a peace conference aimed at reviving the Israeli–Palestinian peace process.
Emilio Alonso Manglano Dealt With Several Scandals and Allegations During the Later Years of His Career
The reputation of Emilio Alonso Manglano increased tremendously toward the end of the 20th century. He became renowned as the father of modern intelligence in Spain and the Lieutenant General who opened the doors of his agency to women and civilians. However, he suffered a mighty fall in 1995 when a media scandal erupted against him, forcing him to resign from his position as the head of CESID. According to the allegations, under his leadership, the agency illegally wiretapped several consequential conversations between 1983 and 1991. The case garnered national attention when Colonel Juan Alberto Perote, the officer who was allegedly responsible for overseeing the operation, was accused of storing recordings of these conversations against the orders.
The intercepted conversations allegedly included exchanges with some of the most influential figures in Spain, reportedly such as King Juan Carlos I. Following his resignation, Manglano was involved in legal proceedings for years. The trials came to an end when he was acquitted of the charges in April 2005. The acquittal came after the withdrawal of the private accusations against him. He also dealt with a similar case in 1998 when CESID faced allegations of illegally wiretapping telephone conversations at the headquarters of the far-left coalition Herri Batasuna. Manglano was initially sentenced to three years in prison, only to be eventually acquitted by the Spanish Supreme Court.
In addition to these two wiretapping cases, Manglano or CESID faced several other allegations. In 1996, El Mundo reported an allegation that military intelligence abducted the homeless to experiment with anti-guerrilla drugs on them, reportedly causing a death. His name was also involved in the kidnapping of Segundo Marey, who is regarded as the victim of the Spanish government’s conflicts against the separatist organization ETA. The assassination of another ETA member, Ramón Oñaederra, was also linked to him. However, it is significant to note that he was not convicted in relation to these cases.
Emilio Alonso Manglano Remained on Headlines Even After His Demise
Emilio Alonso Manglano passed away at the age of eighty-seven on July 8, 2013, in Madrid, Spain. He reportedly suffered from cancer. The late military officer stirred controversies even after his demise through the publication of his notebooks and other documents in 2021. These personal entries contained sensitive information concerning some of the most powerful Spanish figures of his generation, including none other than King Juan Carlos I. In his diaries, he reportedly wrote about the alleged extramarital affair between Carlos and the Spanish actress Bárbara Rey. His entries allegedly further revealed that Rey received large sums of money for keeping the relationship a secret.
The notebooks, diaries, and other documents were revealed to the world by the journalists Juan Fernández-Miranda and Javier Chicote, who reportedly laid their hands on the same through Manglano’s children. These sensitive pieces of information were compiled as a book titled ‘El Jefe de los Espías,’ which translates to “The Chief of the Spies.” The military officer’s life was filled with scandals, landmark events, and consequential decisions that rewrote the history of Spain. That was also why Felipe González, who served as the Prime Minister of Spain, remarked that the country avoided a second coup attempt because of Manglano.
Read More: Bank Under Siege: Is Francisco “Paco” López Based on a Real Spanish Cop?
