News from Andalucia & Costa del Sol
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Injured soldiers head for Gibraltar
By David Eade
Over the next two weeks, several injured soldiers will be visiting Gibraltar, courtesy of a charity called Give Us Time. This is an NGO founded by former UK Defence Secretary Dr Liam Fox to provide holidays for soldiers recently returned from operational duties.
These soldiers require quality time with their families in order to reintegrate into family life and to recuperate after six difficult months apart. The soldiers selected for the trip to Gibraltar have all been injured on operational service in Afghanistan.
Marbella declares war on roadside billboards
Town hall wants some 600 illegal hoardings removedBy David Eade
MARBELLA has for a long time wanted to remove the giant roadside advertising billboards that are both an eyesore and can be a danger to drivers as they cause a distraction. The town hall has catalogued some 600 hoardings that are illegal and now they will be brought down. So far around a third of them have been demolished.
The first move was against those billboards that had been erected on municipal land. There were 80 of these and now another 32 are coming down. Some of these billboards did have permission from previous administrations in Marbella especially in the GIL era. However they were granted illegally.
Renewed call for Mijas Sierra to become Natural Park
Alhaurín says Junta has rejected pleas from several town hallsBy Oliver McIntyre
ALHAURÍN de la Torre town hall is to renew its request that the Junta de Andalucía have the Sierra de Mijas declared a Nature Park in order to provide greater protection and opportunities for the zone, announced local officials last week.
The move comes after the Junta’s Environment Department “rejected the previous petitions submitted by this town hall and other town halls and associations” in the zone, said Alhaurín officials in a written release.
Italian murder fugitive arrested in Marbella
Suspect allegedly killed a Milan jeweller while during an armed robberyBy David Eade
WITHIN a week of the murder of a jeweller during a robbery of his shop in Milan a 39-year-old Italian accused of carrying out the slaying has been arrested in Marbella.
The arrest was carried out by the National Police who also recovered some important items of jewellery stolen in the raid along with 1,630 euros in cash.
Two Italian police officers who have been investigating the Milan robbery and murder were present when the arrest was made. On March 21 the body of the jeweller was found inside his Milan shop and the officers followed the clues to Spain.
The body of the jeweller had severe head wounds and deep incisions caused by a sharp object. The news of the murder caused widespread alarm in Northern Italy and made headline news.
It was suspected the alleged murderer had fled to southern Spain, and Interpol alerted the National Police, who arranged to work with their counterparts from Italy who flew into Madrid. They then travelled to Marbella via Málaga and started the search in the beach zone.
CAMPILLOS TRAGEDY
Murder-suicide suspected after father and daughter found deadBy Oliver McIntyre
THE small inland town of Campillos was rocked on Monday morning when a 30-year-old man was found hanged in his home and his six-year-old daughter was discovered dead on a bed.
The bodies were discovered at around 8.45am when the man’s sister and her husband went to the home to pick up the father and daughter to give them a ride to the train station to catch the AVE train to Barcelona, where the girl, Leonora, lived with her mother.
In December of last year the man, Diego G.P., was convicted of domestic violence against his ex-partner and was sentenced to six months in prison, though the sentence was suspended because he had no prior convictions, confirmed government officials.
The girl’s body was cold when it was found and showed no outward signs of violence but had foam at the mouth, said the town’s mayor, Jesús Galeote. Initial autopsy results showed fluid in the lungs but were inconclusive as to the exact cause of death, so toxicology analyses are now awaited.
More than 4,600 stray animals captured in 2012
Less than half of those made available for adoption were re-homedBy Oliver McIntyre
THE Diputación de Málaga’s stray animal collection service captured 4,636 animals, mostly dogs, last year, a reduction of 11 per cent compared to the previous year.
Figures released last week by the Diputación show that the Residencia Canina Paraíso, which is contracted to provide the service, made a total of 1,173 scheduled or emergency visits to the 88 towns in the province included in the programme, which covers municipalities with populations of less then 20,000.
More than 90 per cent of the strays collected were dogs, with cats making up eight per cent.
Animals that are deemed fit to be pets are put up for adoption, but less than half of these found homes last year. A total of 753 animals were adopted, roughly 40 per cent of all those that were considered apt for re-homing, according to the data from the Diputación.
Police investigate false paedophile warning
Social networking sites wrongly warned parents against innocent manBy Dave Jamieson
A 50-YEAR-OLD disabled Málaga man with learning difficulties has been wrongly branded a paedophile after being spotted outside a school in the city. National Police are presently investigating the source of a picture of the man which was distributed through internet social networking sites, along with the allegation..
Parents are reported to have been concerned by his presence at the school and called the police who questioned the man and cleared him of any wrongdoing. However, that did not stop the rumour spreading that he is a danger to children and his picture has been found posted on lampposts near the school. His family became aware of the allegations when his sister received the picture on a messaging network. She says she now fears for his welfare and brought the matter to the attention of the authorities.
Positive outlook for Madrid’s Olympic bid
City leaders optimistic after Evaluation Commission visitBy David Eade
The evaluation commission of the International Olympic Committee concluded its four-day inspection of Madrid last week with positive comments. Delegates expressed the view that the city’s costs for the 2020 Summer Olympics are “attainable.”
The Madrid bid estimates that bringing the Olympics to Madrid will increase Spain’s gross domestic product by $5 billion while creating 83,000 new full-time jobs. It says the Games would attract 800,000 additional visitors who would inject about $800 million into the economy, and it claims that this is achievable with the Games’ budget of $1.9 billion, a sum guaranteed at all levels of government.
YouTube curbs bullfight coverage
Website shuts down bullfighting channel due to depiction of animal deathsThe internet site YouTube last week closed a channel specialising in bull fighting because it showed the animals being killed. A spokesman said videos could contain images of bulls in the ring, but could not show images of them actually being speared and dying.
The YouTube portal pablolr89 was set up in 2007 by Pablo López Riobo who has received dozens of messages of support on his Twitter account, and the decision appears to have sparked outrage around the world. In a statement, he said that over the years his site had received 17 million hits of which 58 per cent came from outside Spain, while within a couple of days, over 3,000 supporters had signed a petition at change.org demanding that the channel should be reopened.
Pegasus flies over Easter traffic
Eye-in-the-sky radar chopper swoops on speeders during holiday weekBy Dave Jamieson
Over seven million vehicle movements are expected across Spain today (March 27) as people take advantage of the long Easter holiday weekend. Tráfico launched its special traffic control plan for the week last Friday, and for the first time, it incorporates the use of 19 helicopters fitted with new tracking equipment.
The Pegasus radar system is being used to monitor traffic on secondary roads which have no central crash barrier, because Tráfico statistics show that these are where 78 per cent of fatal road accidents occur.