A BRITISH man accused of committing a string of sexual offences has been arrested by the Policia Nacional in Madrid.
John Rocks, 37, was among the latest list of 12 ‘Most Wanted’ names published in May by the UK’s National Crime Agency in association with Spanish authorities under ‘Operation Captura’.
The suspects were all believed to have connections to Spain after fleeing the UK.
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Rocks was wanted by Police Scotland for an unspecified number of sexual assaults allegedly committed between August 2012 and October 2022.
He was detained on Saturday in a central Madrid street after a two-year probe to locate him.
Rocks had spent time in Benidorm, where he is said to have worked in bars and clubs.
Officers started looking for him in 2024 and confirmed he was in the Costa Blanca city but precautions taken by Rocks and constant changes of address made it difficult to find him as he was also helped by people to stay under the radar.
The Policia Nacional said he led an itinerant life, hiding his true identity and had taken different measures to avoid being recognised.
When he was tracked down in Madrid, he was wearing a cap and glasses that partially hid his face.
He had no identity papers on him, refused to cooperate with officers, and kept changing answers to questions as they tried to formally identify him.
The police initially managed to recognise him by comparing his tattoos to photos they had of him.
A final fingerprint check confirmed that Rocks was the suspect wanted by Scottish authorities.
An international arrest warrant was issued in February and he was taken into the custody of the National Court in Madrid to process his extradition.
Exact details of his alleged offences have not been disclosed by the Policia Nacional described them as serious sexual assaults suffered by different victims over a decade.
Some of the women were in a romantic relationship with Rocks when the assaults took place.
The number of victims and charge list have not been revealed or where the attacks happened in Scotland.
John Rocks is the second fugitive to be arrested from May’s Most Wanted list, following the detention of drug trafficking suspect, Simon Dutton, in the Benidorm area.
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