“You have made me a political prisoner,” jailed leader tells judge

One of the nine Catalan pro-independence leaders in pre-trial jail, Jordi Turull, in April accused the Spanish Supreme Court judge investigating him of making him a political prisoner.

This is according to an excerpt of one of Turull's hearings, which was leaked on Monday on the public Catalunya Ràdio station.

"I don't know if when I entered prison in November I could be considered a political prisoner," Turull told the judge. "But what is true is that from March 23 you made me a political prisoner. You know that I could have become the Catalan president, so you put me in jail again."

Jordi Turull was briefly candidate for president in Parliament on March 22 –and while he was not sworn in the first time round, a second vote on his bid was scheduled for March 24.