Michael Eddleston, 27, from Doncaster, is accused of three counts of illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs. He was one of 10 men featured earlier this month in an appeal on the Costa Del Sol, known as Operation Captura. The Crimestoppers charity said Mr Eddleston surrendered himself at the British Consulate in Majorca. It said his arrest was a "fantastic result". Mr Eddleston is alleged to be a member of a crime group which carried out a drug trafficking operation from Doncaster and Morley in West Yorkshire. He was identified after a joint investigation between South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire Police in 2006. Officers recovered large quantities of heroin and amphetamine sulphate valued at £65,000 as part of the operation. Eight men arrested and charged with offences of conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs were jailed at Sheffield Crown Court in November 2006, after entering guilty pleas.

35 year old man wanted in the United States in connection with child pornography has been arrested in Spain while trying to leave the country. The arrest was made in Málaga by officers from the international crime unit of the Costa del Sol Organised Crime and Drugs Squad and the National Court in Madrid will now handle the suspect’s extradition back to the United States.Named by Europa Press as M.R.W., he was wanted on a warrant from the Maricopa County Superior Court in Arizona on 10 counts of possession, transport and distribution of child pornography. He was charged in February last year after police found a large amount of pornographic material on the computers he used at a number of residences in Arizona.The suspect is married with two twin daughters, and it’s understood the original complaint to police came from his wife’s sister.

Body of a woman has been found inside a suitcase left on a street in Barcelona. A local resident alerted the regional police force, Los Mossos d’Escuadra, who said that the body showed clear signs of violence.The suitcase as found in the La Bordeta, Zona Franca, of the city, close to the Gran Vía, at 11pm on Monday night.
There are some unconfirmed reports that the victim could be Latin American, and reporting restrictions have been placed on the case.

Andalucía High Court has reduced sentencing for the 22 year old man, Francisco M.P.P., found guilty earlier this year of the murder of a teenager who was stabbed while trying to break up a fight in Benalmadena’s Plaza Solymar two years ago.The accused was found guilty at a trial by jury this May and sentenced to 17 years in prison.The High Court has however ruled, in a decision published by La Opinión de Málaga this Tuesday, that there was no premeditation in the fatal stabbing, reducing Francisco M.P.P.’s sentence to 13 years behind bars and finding him guilty of the lesser charge of homicide.17 year old José Pedro Fernández died at 6am on 18th November 2007 when he was stabbed in the heart outside a Benalmádena disco. Another suspect in his death, who was just hours away from his 18th birthday when the crime was committed, was found not guilty by a juvenile court.

84 year old man from Belgium died in the Santa Ana district hospital in Motril this Monday after what his wife said was a brutal attack at his home in Almuñécar two weeks ago. Named by Granada Hoy newspaper as R.L.N., he was rescued from his flat on the morning of 8th September, where he was found lying naked and badly injured by the officers and firemen who broke down the door after neighbours heard shouting from his home.The paper notes information from sources at the hospital that his injuries were consistent with a fall.The pensioner’s 77 year old wife said in a statement to the Civil Guard the following day that her husband was assaulted by two women who had forced their way into the couple’s flat to rob them.The Civil Guard are investigating and an autopsy will determine the exact cause of death.

British man who had an European Arrest Warrant in place against him for rape has been detained in Girona.Named by police as 42 year old Bird C, he was arrested last Saturday afternoon on his arrival at Girona airport on a flight from Doncaster in the U.K.. He is wanted in connection with the rape of a young woman in Germany in 1997.Because Britain is not a member of the Schengen agreement, the arrivals at Girona are considered as being from outside the European Union and therefore passports are subjected to greater scrutiny, and that is how his arrival was flagged.
It’s understood that the court in Neustadt in Germany where the rape took place only entered the details into the Schengen computers last September 9, resulting in the suspect’s arrest just ten days later.He will appear before Instruction Court 5 in the National Court in Madrid which will deal with his extradition.

National Police in Spain have recovered one of Europe’s biggest hauls of heroin so far this year: 35 kilos of the drug found hidden in the hydraulic brake system of a lorry parked at a service station in Seseña, Toledo.It’s a method of smuggling which has not been seen in Spain before, and it appears the heroin was brought into the country from Bulgaria with the aim of distributing it in Madrid and Aragón.Six people were taken into custody, including the organisation’s leader, named by the Interior Ministry as G.T., who had flown over from Bulgaria to personally oversee delivery of the drugs.An additional 11 suspects were arrested in the first phase of the operation.

Trial was due to start at the Murcia provincial court this Thursday of a 34 year old man who killed his mother in the bar she owned in Santomera last year and then carried her decapitated head around the town under his arm.It happened on 15th April 2008 when Ángelo C. stabbed his 56 year old mother, T.M., four times in the abdomen, cut off her head and carried it around town wrapped in a bloody rag until he was arrested by police.It was revealed after the killing that the mother had been on Spanish television before she died saying she was terrified of her son because of his precarious mental state and that her life was in danger. It later emerged that he had been arrested on four occasions for domestic violence and twice spent time in prison for beating his mother.The prosecutor is applying for a 20-year sentence in a psychiatric centre at the accused’s trial by jury.

UK charity Crimestoppers has launched a new appeal for British fugitives believed to be on the run on in Spain, with a list of the ten most wanted thought to be hiding out on the Costa del Sol. The charges include drug offences, robbery and rape.Crimestoppers said some of them are the UK’s most dangerous child sex offenders.
The appeal launched this Wednesday comes under Operación Captura, run jointly with the SOCA Serious Organised Crime Agency and the Spanish authorities, which has seen 23 out of 40 criminals taken into custody since it was first launched in October 2006.Dave Cording, Crimestoppers’ Director of Operations, said, ‘These appeals include some very nasty individuals and crimes, and we need you, the public, to help us put them behind bars where they belong.’ He stressed that no-one should attempt to approach any of the suspects, but should contact the charity immediately with any information.The freephone telephone number in Spain is 900 555 111, and details of the ten most wanted can be found on the Crimestoppers website www.crimestoppers-uk.org

Paedophile on the run for abusing a nine-year-old girl could be hiding in a Spanish resort. Now investigators will be launching a manhunt for wanted Stephen Burnell, as part of a wider investigation into ten known criminals thought to have fled to Costa Del Sol region of Spain. Burnell, 55, went on the run in 2007 after sacking his defence team days before his trial was due to start. He was sentenced to six years imprisonment for carrying out a number of sickening sex crimes against the nine-year-old – including attempted rape, making pornographic images, and eight sex attacks – and put on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life in his absence.
Despite a nationwide search for Burnell, who once lived in the South Bank area of York as well as other parts of the city, he still has not been found. Under the banner of Operation Captura, investigators behind UK crime-fighting charity Crimestoppers, and the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), want the help of the public to trace fugitives thought to be on the run in Spanish resorts. Several waves of the appeal, first launched in October 2006, have led to the arrest of 23 out of 40 criminals arrested.

Burnell is described as being 5ft 9ins tall, of medium build, with blue eyes and has a ruddy complexion with cropped receding ginger hair with a full ginger beard and moustache.

He has a number of distinctive tattoos, including a black panther on his left arm; a skull with a dagger behind; and the words Do Or Die printed over the top of his right arm. He is described as having a nomadic lifestyle. Details of the ten men, which also include a suspected child rapist, Martin Smith from Tyneside, and suspected Manchester jewellery robber Benjamin Murphy, are posted by Crimestoppers on a “most wanted” website targeting the region.

National Court judge has indicted three former SS guards at Nazi concentration camps for genocide and crimes against humanity and has issued international warrants for their arrest.The National Court judge Ismael Moreno said in a ruling this Thursday that Johann Leprich and Anton Tittjung are believed to be living in the United States, while the third suspect, Josias Kumpf, is believed to be in Austria.
His ruling comes after a complaint presented by two Spanish survivors of the Nazi death camps against four SS guards at the Mauthausen, Sachsenhausen and Flossenbürg concentration camps. The fourth guard is John Demjanjuk, and Judge Moreno understands, El Mundo reports, that he is already charged by the authorities in Germany.EFE reports that 4,300 Spanish prisoners died in Mauthausen alone of the 7,000 Spaniards who were incarcerated there.

Homeless man found dead in Motril on Sunday afternoon has been identified by Europa Press as a man in his forties from Holland. No name has been released to the press as yet.His body was found beneath a cherimoya tree near the Rambla del Piojo, near a local industrial estate, by another homeless man who had been with him only that morning, but returned to the area where they both lived to find his friend had died.It’s understood there were no signs of violence and his death is believed to have been from natural causes.

Civil Guard officer is in a coma in a Málaga hospital after being hit by a drunk driver on the A-357 road to Campillos early on Sunday. The officer was hit as he was directing traffic away from the scene of another accident minutes before, suffering serious head injuries, with additional injuries to his legs and a lung, in the impact. The 27 year old from Málaga, J.J.B.O., is now in Intensive Care in Carlos Haya Hospital.The driver in the first accident was freed from his vehicle by firemen and is reported by Málaga Hoy newspaper to also have been drunk at the wheel, suffering minor injuries in the crash.There was yet another smash at the same spot as firemen were still working to free the man trapped in his car, when yet another drunk driver ploughed into a local police officer’s motorcycle placed on the road to block traffic. It’s understood the motorbike was a total write-off.And on Saturday, a 39 year old man was killed in Almayate Costa after he was hit by a car while cycling along the N-340 coast road.

Civil Guard have revealed drug hauls amounting to more than six tons of cannabis resin in Málaga province since the beginning of this month, with an additional 919 kilos of marijuana seized during that time. 23 people have been arrested in connection with public health crimes.The latest find was 1.7 tons of cannabis in a van dumped after an accident on the A-7 motorway in Estepona some days ago, which followed a Civil Guard chase when the driver sped off after ignoring an order to halt.In two separate operations, two boats were intercepted off the coasts of Nerja and Benalmádena, carrying a total of 3.3 tons of cannabis.

Trial starts of two British men, named as Richard Henry Roberts, 35, and Anthony Griffths, 22 ., who are accused of killing another Briton, 26 year old Daniel Hastelow, and breaking into his home in Magaluf on Mallorca in January this year.The attack came at 4am on the morning after the victim’s birthday in an apartment in Calle Contra almirante Riviera in Magaluf, but an argument had started before that in a local pup. This allegedly led the attackers to go to the home of the victim, armed with a baseball bat and knife. The victim was stabbed several times and the two suspects were arrested at Palma airport afterwards when trying to flee Mallorca. They have been held in prison on remand since January 15 this year.A statement from the Supreme Court said that the case will get underway at 9,30am this morning with the selection of the jury, and is expected to continue in both morning and afternoon sessions until Wednesday.

British person who seriously injured another in a fight in Calvià in Mallorca has been arrested.49 year old Mark James W. was detained on Saturday after handing himself into the authorities when he realised they were after him. His arrest is in connection with the injuries suffered by 51 year old Christopher M, who had to be admitted to the intensive care unit of the Son Dureta Hospital after the attack in the early hours of September 5. The victim remains in a serious condition.
ABC reports that the Guardia Civil now have two witnesses to the attack.

Their identities have yet to be confirmed, but it's understood a British couple disappeared at the time they are believed to have died.The British Consulate is reported to have been in contact with the Civil Guard in Alicante province in connection with the two bodies found in an isolated area of the Sierra de Bèrnia, in Llíber, on Sunday. There are concerns that they could be a British couple who have been missing since July and it’s understood that the badly-decomposed bodies discovered by a hunter in the paraje de Marnes could have been there for around two months.There is no information as yet on the couple’s identity, however, and there was no documentation which could help in the identification in a rucksack found nearby.La Verdad newspaper reports this Tuesday that the body of the woman had three bullet wounds, while the man had been shot once. A pistol was found nearby.The paper said DNA testing will give investigators information on the couple’s ages, which will then be matched with details of persons reported missing in Spain. The results could take a number of weeks.

Two men are in hospital after a massive street fight on the Antonio Machado paseo marítimo in Málaga early on Wednesday involving an estimated 20 people, many of them from Eastern European countries.Both men were seriously hurt in the brawl and it’s understood that one suffered head injuries, while the other was stabbed.
EFE reports that six people are in custody.

woman has been arrested for the Level 2 wildfire in Estepona last week which destroyed more than 500 hectares of land and spread over the border with Casares. The flames blazed for almost 30 hours before they were finally brought under control last Thursday evening.The investigation ruled out an accident or negligence as the cause of the fire, and in fact a municipal employee had seen someone fleeing the area when the fire started in the area of Los Pedregales on Wednesday afternoon last week.The woman arrested on suspicion of having set the blaze is named by Diario Sur as J.T.P., a middle-aged woman who is from Estepona itself, and it’s understood she was taken into custody this Wednesday morning. She’s now been released with charges and will be called in for questioning by a judge.

Civil Guard have transported almost three and a half tons of marijuana plants to the barracks in Salobreña, which they found growing in a greenhouse in Molvízar. The owner is reported to have claimed he was growing cherry tomatoes.
Officers found 455 marijuana plants growing there, some of them reaching a height of 3 metres. Their total weight was found to be 3,380 kilos.Europa Press said the man who was growing them admitted to a judge in Motril that he planned to dry and sell his crop, and he’s now on remand for a public health crime. He also faces a charge of illegal possession of weapons for a hunting shotgun found in his home for which he did not have a licence.

Wanted drugs smuggler has been arrested in San Pedro de Alcántara on an international arrest warrant issued by the authorities in Italy in March last year. Named by EFE as G.D.M. from Angri in Italy, he is accused of being part of a gang which smuggled 30 kilos of cocaine into the country, together with another 30 kilos of cannabis resin.He was arrested last week after National Police identified an Italian guest at a San Pedro hotel as the man wanted by Italy. The suspect was transferred to Madrid following his arrest, where the National Court will handle the extradition procedure

Well-known local businessman has been found shot dead in Ronda, a 55 year old named by Diario Sur as J.M.S. whose body was discovered near the Legion headquarters in La Indiana at around 2.30 on Tuesday afternoon. The businessman is understood to have owned land in La Indiana.A man is already in custody for his murder, an 18 year old named as D.R.F. from Almería who was arrested in Algodonales, Cádiz province, on Tuesday afternoon. He was seen with the victim in his car shortly before the shooting, and then running off to catch a taxi to escape the scene.Sur said the two men appear to have argued over a business matter while driving to a livestock fair being held in the area.The paper notes 18 murders in Málaga province so far this year, compared to the 14 which took place throughout the 12 months of 2008.

Police in Ireland have seized 1 million € worth of cocaine, sent by messenger service on an aircraft from Spain.The 13 kilos of cocaine were sent as an urgent package from Madrid and intercepted by Spain’s Agencia Tributaria Tax Agency. The decision was taken, after contacting the Garda in Ireland, to allow the package to continue on its route to Dublin, which the Irish Independent said was sent under the description of spare parts.The man who collected the package at Dublin Airport was followed to a rendezvous with another man last Friday, where both suspects were taken into custody.

EFE notes a Marbella connection, but gives no further details of that information.

In Cataluña, a German couple have been arrested after the discovery by the Mossos d’Esquadra regional police of almost one ton of cannabis resin in a van found abandoned in Tortosa, Tarragona. The husband and wife are named by EFE as Isabel B.M., resident in Cambrils, and Erich B., both aged 53.750 kilos of marijuana were also found in the vehicle which, as with the cannabis, was in packets labelled as powdered tomato soup. They are believed to have smuggled the drugs into Spain by sea from Iran.

56 year old Briton, named with the initials C.G.H., died on Tuesday evening in Burón, León when his motorbike left the road and he collided with the crash barrier.
It happened at the 106.9 km point of the N-625 between León and Santander.He was the only person on the Triumph bike, with registration WF09WXV.

Local police in Orihuela Costa have arrested a British man who is accused of ill-treating his wife. La Verdad reports that the woman called the 112 emergency number as she was scared of entering her home after an argument with her husband who was drunk.A police patrol accompanied the woman, who is reported as being very upset, to the local health centre, and then arrested the 42 year old man and took him to the Civil Guard barracks at Pilar de la Horadada.

National Police Inspector based in Ceuta has been arrested by his own colleagues after he was caught having sex with a prostitute while on duty. He was found with the woman in his official car on the outskirts of the Autonomous City on Wednesday.
The Inspector was only assigned to Ceuta some months ago and is reported by EFE to have allegedly threatened the woman into having sex with him.An internal investigation is now under way in addition to the court investigation.

There has been news of two major successes in the fight against drug smuggling in Spain and, in the largest of the hauls, police in Ireland have seized 1 million € worth of cocaine, sent by messenger service on an aircraft from Spain.The 13 kilos of cocaine were sent as an urgent package from Madrid and intercepted by Spain’s Agencia Tributaria Tax Agency. The decision was taken, after contacting the Garda in Ireland, to allow the package to continue on its route to Dublin, which the Irish Independent said was sent under the description of spare parts.The man who collected the package at Dublin Airport was followed to a rendezvous with another man last Friday, where both suspects were taken into custody.EFE notes a Marbella connection, but gives no further details of that information.In Cataluña, a German couple have been arrested after the discovery by the Mossos d’Esquadra regional police of almost one ton of cannabis resin in a van found abandoned in Tortosa, Tarragona. The husband and wife are named by EFE as Isabel B.M., resident in Cambrils, and Erich B., both aged 53.750 kilos of marijuana were also found in the vehicle which, as with the cannabis, was in packets labelled as powdered tomato soup. They are believed to have smuggled the drugs into Spain by sea from Iran.

Spanish authorities have denied that there any suspicious circumstances involved in the death of Irish boxer Ollie Walsh, 33. Mr Walsh, a former kick-boxing champion from Wexford, had been living in Spain for 18 months before he died in his home in the village of Guaro, 30 miles from Malaga on the Costa del Sol, on August 22.
Police have decided not to investigate the death, and a judge has archived the case. A spokeswoman for the Civil Guard denied reports that fake passports, weapons, needles and hand grenades were found in Mr Walsh's home.