24 Jun, 2024 @ 14:00
1 min read

Teenager accused of shooting a British expat to death in Spain dies a day before he was due to stand trial

Teenager accused of shooting a British expat to death in Spain dies a day before he was due to stand trial

A TEENAGER died in a motorway car crash- a day before he was going to be tried over the May 2022 killing of an 80-year-old British woman at her Elche villa.

The accident happened on June 9 on the AP-7 at Campoamor on the Orihuela Costa.

The 18-year-old’s Mercedes convertible was discovered overturned off the road in an area of palm trees.

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TORRE AZUL VILLA FRONT GATES

The Guardia Civil said there was no sign of any tyre marks to suggest he had tried to break, with one theory being that he fell asleep at the wheel.

He had been arrested with his mother for the fatal attack on the British national over two years ago,

An Alicante juvenile court was set to try him on June 10 and he had previously served nine months in a juvenile detention centre before being bailed.

His mother’s hearing takes place after the summer at Elche High Court.

Reports from May 2002 said the woman- now aged 48- knew the victim named as Marina and three bullets were allegedly fired at close range.

Following the death of her husband, Marina lived on her own in the Torre Azul area of Torrellano, close to Alicante-Elche airport.

She had been in Spain for over 20 years after her partner retired from running a recycling business..

Though she was of German descent, Marina was a British citizen and passport holder.

The mother and son gained access to the villa while the main gates were left open awaiting the arrival of a plumber.

Once inside the grounds, the intruders went into the house through a glazed porch and made a surprise attack on the 80-year-old Brit.

The motive for the killing has not been disclosed.

The initial attack was carried out with a knife, and then the victim was shot three times, with first reports suggesting it was the mother.

Speaking about Marina at the time, a neighbour said: “She was a woman of great character and a perfectionist who I could see resisting a robbery and hitting the intruder with a shovel.”

The plumber brought in to do some emergency repairs raised the alarm when she did not open the door.

Residents, including the plumber, reported sightings of ‘two people dressed in black’ in the area.

One eye-witness saw a man and woman drive off in a black car and both were hooded and wore face masks.

Click here to read more Costa Blanca News from The Olive Press.

Alex Trelinski

Alex worked for 30 years for the BBC as a presenter, producer and manager. He covered a variety of areas specialising in sport, news and politics. After moving to the Costa Blanca over a decade ago, he edited a newspaper for 5 years and worked on local radio.

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