Dimitris Kouimtsidis
THE family of a British man killed on the Costa del Sol are still demanding urgent answers, nearly 18 months after his death.
Sean Hercules was shot by Spanish police in September 2018, after allegedly reaching for a gun.
Yet, his mother Martha Friel, 65, insists she has still not received an official police report, as an inquest is set to begin in the UK.
“They shot him 38 times which is surely an excessive number,” she told the Olive Press exclusively this week.
“Because he was black meant the police didn’t treat the situation cautiously, they didn’t want to take any risks and went with the intention of shooting him.”
His death came after the convicted British criminal had allegedly pulled out a gun on the streets of Estepona.
The 39-year-old was a convicted robber, who just 12 weeks after being released from a four year sentence went on to shoot a man in Leeds city centre in 2006.
Yet his mother insisted he had become a changed man.
“Yes, he was a criminal in the past, but he had reformed, he was getting ready to open a business,” she insisted this week.
He had gone out drinking with some friends in Puerto Banus and then crashed his car on the way back home, allegedly fleeing the scene with a gun.
The police arrived to arrest him at a hotel room in Cancelada, that according to his mother he had checked into because he couldn’t make it back to his flat on foot.
Once there, the father of two opened the door, walked down the corridor and drew a weapon, which led to the policemen firing back and killing him.
Despite looking like an open and shut case, the British consulate has failed to get the police report despite asking on many occasions, his mother claims.
“I want to know why would Sean pull a gun on policemen, that’s suicide?
“I think they had him confused for someone else.
“The autopsy report we got from our solicitor stated that Sean was shot 38 times, but we have no evidence as to why it was such an excessive number.”
The full inquest is to take place in Wakefield on March 2.
