(Bloomberg) -- Fugitive Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont is on his way back to Belgium after he defied an arrest warrant with a dramatic appearance in Barcelona on Thursday.
Jordi Turull, the general secretary of Puigdemont’s Junts party, told Catalan radio RAC1 Friday that the former regional president is returning to the small town of Waterloo south of Brussels, where he has been based for most of the past seven years of self-imposed exile. The 61-year-old fled after speaking to supporters in central Barcelona, with local police apparently unable — or unwilling — to take him into custody amid farcical scenes.
Turull said that Puigdemont, who had been in Barcelona since Tuesday without being detained, intended to take part in an investiture debate in parliament but changed his plans after seeing the police operation to arrest him — dubbed Operation Cage by the authorities.
Puigdemont’s lawyer said earlier Friday that the former Catalan leader planned to make a statement by Saturday at the latest.
After his brief speech Thursday, police launched a manhunt for Puigdemont, setting up roadblocks in the city and on roads leading to the French border that caused major traffic jams across the region. Two police officers were arrested for allegedly assisting in the escape.
His dramatic return has raised the stakes for Spain’s Socialist prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, who relies on the votes of Junts to remain in power.
Sanchez’s government agreed to an amnesty deal last year that absolved Catalan separatists from charges relating to the 2017 referendum in exchange for their support in Madrid. Spain’s Supreme Court then ruled that the deal did not apply to Puigdemont or others charged with misuse of public funds.
Though Puigdemont remains popular among supporters of independence, he was beaten into second place in the Catalan elections in May by Socialist Salvador Illa.
With the other major separatist party ERC losing 13 seats, it marked the first time in four decades that the nationalist bloc failed to secure a majority in the regional parliament.
The conservative pro-independence politician has been on the run ever since he tried to split Catalonia from Spain in a 2017 referendum. He has lived in Brussels for most of the past seven years after police indicted him on charges relating to the failed bid.
Puigdemont spoke Thursday to thousands of supporters in Barcelona under the noses of police officers, who appeared to make little attempt to detain him.
“Today many thought they’d be celebrating my arrest, and thought that this punishment would dissuade us,” he told the crowd. “Well, they are wrong.”
Hours later, Illa was confirmed as head of the Catalan government thanks to the support of ERC and the left-wing Comuns Sumar party.
(Updates with additional details starting in first paragraph)
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