Rato, the former head of the IMF, was given a fresh prison sentence for corruption

Rodrigo Rato, the former head of the International Monetary Fund, was sentenced to nearly five years in jail by a Madrid court on Friday for corruption offenses.

In a statement to Reuters via the law firm Baker McKenzie, Rato, who has denied any wrongdoing throughout a nine-year investigation, said the decision was “unfair” and that he will file an appeal.

During his time as chairman of the Spanish lender Bankia, Rato had already served two years in prison for a different embezzlement case.

After a year-long trial, the court found Rato guilty on three charges of money laundering, corruption involving non-public sector actors, and offenses against Spanish tax authorities. He was given a prison term of four years, nine months, and one day.

According to a court spokeswoman, Rato will not be required to serve any jail time until the Supreme Court renders a final decision because the decision may be appealed.

Rato, 75, who chaired Bankia from 2010 to 2012 and the IMF from 2004 to 2007, previously served two years in prison after being found guilty in 2017 of using Bankia credit cards improperly to purchase luxury clothing, jewelry, and vacations.

For the 11 charges against him in the more recent corruption case, prosecutors had asked for a total jail sentence of 63 years.

Baker McKenzie, Rato’s attorney Maria Masso, had requested last year that the court drop the charges, claiming that the evidence gathered during the raid should be revoked because Rato’s rights had been infringed upon during a 2015 search of his house.

In addition, the court mandated that Rato pay 568,413 euros to tax authorities and penalty exceeding two million euros ($2.08 million).

In a second fraud trial concerning Bankia’s listing in 2012, Rato, who was deputy prime minister in the conservative People’s Party (PP) government from 1996 to 2004, was found not guilty.

$1 is equivalent to 0.9625 euros.