A TEENAGER has been arrested after a machete-wielding street mugger was stabbed to death following a chaotic street chase through central Barcelona.
The violent incident unfolded just before midnight on Saturday in the popular Sant Antoni neighbourhood when a group of five men reportedly targeted people sitting on a bar terrace.
Armed with large knives, the assailants who witnesses described as of North African origin attempted to rob a couple sitting at a terrace at the intersection of Carrer Viladomat and Marques Campo Sagrado, according to local reports.
However, the mugging took a different turn when the victims fought back, triggering a massive commotion that alerted the surrounding streets.
Passing cars began honking their horns to raise the alarm, prompting the armed gang to flee towards the neighbouring El Raval district.
According to accounts shared online, a large group of people pursued the fleeing suspects, some of whom were attempting to escape on scooters.
The pursuit culminated in a violent confrontation a few streets away at the junction of Carrer de la Cera and Ronda de Sant Pau.
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During the brawl, one of the alleged robbers suffered a critical stab wound.
Witnesses reported hearing horrible screams of pain while, a badly injured man was seen collapsed on the pavement outside a Burger King on the boundary of the Raval and San Antoni.
Harrowing images later shared on social media confirmed the grisly scene.
Emergency medics from the Sistema d’Emergencies Mediques (SEM) evacuated the injured man to a local hospital, where he died shortly afterwards.
The chaos of the street chase even spilled over into a nearby student residence on Avinguda del Parallel.
Witnesses described terrified people sprinting into the building to take refuge, with confused bystanders unable to tell if they were fleeing victims or the machete-wielding attackers attempting to hide out.
The terrifying incident has sparked local fury over police response times.
Despite the prolonged screams and frantic car horns, witnesses on the ground claimed it took the Mossos d’Esquadra a full 10 minutes to arrive at the scene, with one branding the delay a ‘disgrace’.
The Guardia Urbana police force quickly located and arrested a minor in connection with the fatal stabbing.
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Detectives from the Mossos d’Esquadra’s Criminal Investigation Division (DIC) have now taken charge of the case.
Investigating officers suspect the arrested youth was one of the original victims of the attempted terrace robbery who had turned the tables on his attacker.
A judge has placed a strict secrecy order on the ongoing proceedings as police gather witness statements and scour CCTV footage.
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