The fates of the Leicester players Paul Dickov, Keith Gillespie and Frank Sinclair lie in the hands of a judge who belongs to the Catholic order, Opus Dei. They are accused of "sexual aggression" after an alleged incident last Sunday night involving three women at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Spain's La Manga.

Jacinto Areste Sancho was appointed as the examining judge in the case yesterday. He is in his late 40s and a member of Opus Dei, the ultra-conservative Catholic lay organisation whose adherents are advised: "As lay persons to ensure that their secular activities conform to the natural moral order. . . contributing to the sanctification of the world, by making the Gospel present in all human endeavours." Many members remain celibate even if they are not ordained.

Though he had been expected to meet prosecution lawyers yesterday, Mr Areste was still meticulously working his way through the 300-page dossier that had been compiled by the previous investigating judge, Pilar Perez.

The defence have applied for bail for the players; however, Spanish law is clear on the prerequisites for such a request to succeed and it is conflicts between these preconditions that Mr Areste will consider.

"It is very early to provide liberty, he might think they have to stay in prison for two or three months until what we call the "social alarm" has disappeared," explained David Vidal Torres, a local lawyer who has known Areste for 13 years.

"In Spain there are three conditions to obtain freedom. First is that there is no 'penal antecedent' (previous conviction), that is very important. Second, that the person who applies for their liberty cannot evade justice.

"This second condition is easy for the players because they are easily recognised. The third condition, and the most important in this case, is that the social alarm, the scandal, has disappeared. This is what the judge will be thinking about."

Vidal Torres insists that Areste will not allow his beliefs to influence his treatment of the case. "He is one of the better judges in Cartagena," added Vidal Torres. "He will consider this case like any other and he has a lot of years of experience of justice in the region, with a lot of sexual aggression cases."