Alex Trelinski
A SUSPECT in the murder of Belfast father-of-two John George has agreed to be extradited back to Spain.
Jonathan ‘Jonny’ Alan Smyth, 26, was named in international arrest warrants having fled Spain following Mr. George’s disappearance in December.
Smyth reportedly travelled to Asia and the Middle East before ending up in Portugal.
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He was staying in an Airbnb apartment with his girlfriend in Braga when he was arrested on Tuesday.
Smyth- from County Antrim- appeared before the Guimarães Court of Appeal on Thursday where he said he would not oppose the extradition warrant.
He was remanded back into custody after the hearing, with the extradition procedure expected to take around a week.
Smyth’s detention came following ‘tenacious’ investigative work done by his family.
John George’s body was found on January 7 close to a road in Rojales, near Torrevieja.
The 37-year-old had been stripped naked and stabbed in the legs to disable him before being shot.
John’s relatives reported him missing in mid-December after he went on holiday to Cabo Roig on the Orihuela Costa.
After little was done by police the family launched their own investigation, which pointed the finger at two people from Northern Ireland.
“Over a week ago the family obtained significant information pointing to the possible location of two suspects in Braga,” said their solicitor Kevin Winters.
“That information was passed immediately to the authorities.”
The only other arrest over the killing saw a 32-year-old Czech national bailed by a Torrevieja court on January 10.
He was told that he was being investigated as an alleged accomplice.
