Margaret Moran MP Padre Eterno, near Orgiva

Margaret Moran reportedly ‘flipped’ her second home between Westminster, Luton and Southampton, claiming thousands on each in turn.At the same time, she has rented out the four-bedroom villa in Granada at various times since buying it in 1984.
The Labour MP, who charged taxpayers £22,000 for dry rot treatment at a home her husband owns in England, used a local agent to organise the rentals.
Holiday lettings agency Rustic Blue confirmed to the Olive Press that it had rented out the luxury property in Padre Eterno, near Orgiva on a number of occasions.
“Moran is supposed to be a Labour MP but she is behaving like an English imperialist from the days of the Raj. She should buy herself a villa in Marbella and be done with it”While the agency, based in Bubion, is no longer renting out the property, which is joint owned by her brother John, a spokesman said: “I remember the house. We used to rent it, but it is no longer on our books.“I can’t remember what it was on for, but we used to rent it through a local friend, who was in charge of the property and garden.“It was a popular place and in a charming spot.”
While there is no suggestion of impropriety over the rentals, her true socialist values were called into question after she bulldozed an access path to dozens of neighbours’ homes.The Olive Press reported how she had been forced to call police after becoming embroiled in a vicious neighbour’s dispute over the path.Her neighbours called a protest, insisting that the path had been used for more than 20 years by verbal agreement.Eventually the MP for Luton South was ordered by a judge in 2007 to reopen the path. She later lost an appeal.At the same time Miss Moran was accused of breaching parliamentary rules by pinning a notice to her gatepost using official House of Commons paper.The notice, which she denied to the Olive Press, had warned neighbours not to come on her land.When the story appeared in the British Press, Miss Moran contacted solicitors then claimed their £881.25 bill through her Incidental Office Expenses account, which is meant to cover the running of her constituency office.The claim was waived through by the fees office. However in 2007-08, she bought a fridge and blinds that were delivered to her Luton property. The House of Commons said: “you wouldn’t be able to use the IEP to furnish homes”.
The fees office did reject some of Miss Moran’s claims, however. It refused to pay a £47 bill from a printer for Christmas cards and £164.50 for birthday cards.
As The Daily Telegraph disclosed, Miss Moran ‘flipped’ her second homes over four years, spending thousands of pounds on decorating each one in turn.First, she installed a new £4,756.40 kitchen, fitted a £2,678 carpet and bought a bed worth £527.20 for a flat near the House of Commons.Miss Moran then switched her second-home designation to Luton and spent £2,350 on the garden, £1,823.09 on bathroom repairs, £212.50 on bedding and £4,200 on decorating.Finally, she changed her second home to the semi-detached property in Southampton, which her husband has owned since 1988, and soon after claimed £22,500 for the dry rot treatment, a fraction less than the maximum allowance available for the whole year.The fees office said she had broken the “spirit” of the rules, but admitted it was powerless to reject her claims.
Miss Moran said: “It is all within the claims policy and that’s why I’m angry about this because it gives the incredibly misleading impression that somehow we’ve been dodgy, that we’ve been fraudulent or we’ve been corrupt.After losing her battle to block access paths in 2007, neighbours described her behaviour as “mean, bloody-minded and tawdry.”“It was completely unsocialist behaviour,” said neighbour Nick Nicholson, who works in the oil industry.Another neighbour Nuri went further. “Moran is supposed to be a Labour MP but she is behaving like an English imperialist from the days of the Raj. She should buy herself a villa in Marbella and be done with it.”

The Brits to Spain holiday market is in meltdown at the moment.

"Unless prices drop soon, dozens of hotels, restuarants and tourist attractions in Spain and its islands risk closure."Last year 15.8million UK tourists holidayed in Spain, representing 27 per cent of all visitors to the country.But while Spain remains our No1 destination, the number of Brits going there is down by 23 per cent so far this year.The explanation is simple. In January 2007 Britons travelling to Spain got 1.5 euros for a pound. Now they get just 1.1.By comparison, Turkey, Egypt and other non-euro countries look very good value for money.A recent survey by Thomas Cook found the average holiday expenditure in Majorca was £42.40 per person per day. In Egypt it was £33.93, in Turkey £30.12, in Cuba, £27.44 and in Goa just £12.58.But great deals in mainland Spain and the Balearic and Canary Islands could be just around the corner.Steve Endacott, Chief Executive of travel agents On Holiday, confirmed: "Destinations like Minorca and Majorca have been hit particularly badly."But the majority of late charter flight seats left to sell are to Spain and at really low prices. I,ve never seen such low prices for flights to Spain. Basically, there are a lot more Spanish holidays to sell, while most deals to Turkey, Egypt and the like have gone."Spain has also seen a huge slump in domestic bookings.And many Spanish hoteliers are ready to slash rates much more aggressively than Greek or Turkish hotels.Britain's leading travel group TUI Travel announced earlier this week that almost HALF of its holidays had yet to be sold.Overall, the beleaguered tourism industry has seen bookings fall by an estimated quarter of a billion pounds this year. The total number of all foreign trips booked this year has fallen by nearly 20 per cent, as cautious Brits, fearing that they could lose their jobs, wait until the last minute before buying.The pound is also much weaker against the US dollar than it was and trips to North America have slumped by 29 per cent.
Travel industry expert Kevin May advised families to look for bargains in June and July. He said: "Firms are not filling up all their plane seats and hotel rooms, so once we get into June and there's still capacity to fill, prices will have to come down."A spokeswoman for Which? Holiday said: "There will be bargains. But one market that is holding up well is Britain. Camp sites and places like Center Parcs are 99 per cent booked up." Surprisingly, one overseas destination worth checking out for cheap deals is pig flu-hit Mexico.The Foreign Office has lifted its ban on non-essential travel and flights resume on May 24.Experts said travel agents are set to cut prices on Mexico.

Marbella proceedings started against properties owned by Marbella Town Hall and the Hotel Marbella Club.

Demarcación General de Costas is reported to have started proceedings to recover the land, declared to be public shoreline, on which nearly 30 homes and other buildings have been constructed in Marbella.Among those affected is the Duchess of Alba, Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, who faces losing 32 square metres of her property on the Casa Blanca beach. A wall with gated access to her land has to go, according to the latest official provincial bulletin.The coastal authority has also started proceedings against properties owned by Marbella Town Hall and the Hotel Marbella Club. Owners have an eight day period to present their complaints against the orders. Then, if no complaints are made, or if the complaints are considered non-applicable, ‘the necessary measures will be taken to recover the occupied public land’, and that can include what is described as ‘administrative eviction’ as outlined in the Ley de Costas.Similar inspections are expected to result more cases in Fuengirola, Benalmádena and Torremolinos later this month and in June as the coastal authority moves East.

Margaret Moran in southern Spain, parliamentary stationery may not be used for ‘personal, business or commercial correspondence’

British MP who was ordered to let neighbours use a right of way across her land in the Alpujarra could now face an investigation for allegedly using House of Commons notepaper to warn them off.The Daily Telegraph reports this Thursday that their journalists have located a piece of stationery with the Commons crest which reads, ‘Please note – this road is private & closed. Please remove your motorcycle from our land’. They say it’s written in English and Spanish, in handwriting which is an exact match to the MP’s.The note was reportedly in the possession of a British man who lives near the home owned by Margaret Moran in southern Spain. Two years ago, a court in Órgiva ordered the Labour MP to allow locals to use a right of way over her property in Carataunas, a small village in the Alpujarra, after she installed a gate to block the way. The Briton found the note pinned to his motorbike and has told the Telegraph that he decided to keep it to pin up on the wall above his toilet.Another neighbour claimed back in 2007 that he had also found a note from Ms Moran written on House of Commons paper, an allegation which the MP denied. Under House of Commons regulations, parliamentary stationery may not be used for ‘personal, business or commercial correspondence’, and it’s understood the Commons has been informed of the matter reported this week by the Telegraph.

Fuengirola criminal attempts to remove his finger prints

Police in Fuengirola have arrested a 30 year old criminal who had several warrants out for his arrest and a long criminal record. The suspect was caught a few days ago when he and another criminal of the same nationality jumped a police checkpoint. Officers chased the suspect, who was driving a rented Opel Corsa, and managed to corner him.Inside the vehicle officers found a suitcase, clothes and a safe which they discovered had been stolen from a tourist who was staying at a hotel. Once taken to the police cells, the man was caught rubbing his fingers against the wall to try and remove his fingerprints to stop the police from identifying him. When approached by an officer, the suspect tried to take his gun off him in order to escape. He was finally restained and now awaits a court date.

Charles Stabler, 65, never woke from a coma after being hit around the head last month.

Charles Stabler, 65, never woke from a coma after being hit around the head last month.A neighbour called emergency services after seeing smoke coming from the flat, in the seaside resort of Benalmadena.Fireman found Mr Stabler lying unconscious on the floor of the flat and he was taken to the Carlos Haya hospital in Malaga.
The burglar fled after ransacking the apartment and setting it on fire.A 44-year-old Spaniard was arrested 17 days later and is in prison on remand accused of the crime.He is thought to have followed Mr Stabler home from a local bar and forced his way in at around midnight on April 9.Mr Stabler had stayed at the resort, next to Torremolinos on the southern Spanish holiday coast, for some years.

20minutos reports that Pantoja broke off with the ex Mayor by giving the news first to Hola! Magazine.

Spanish Prensa Rosa gossip press are waiting to see what will happen between diva Isabel Pantoja and the ex Mayor of Marbella, Julián Muñoz, also now considered to be the singer’s ex.
According to reports Pantoja sent a fax to Muñoz a month ago, giving him a month to remove his things from her Marbella home ‘Mi Gitana’. The fax also asked him to stop using her four wheel drive vehicle.However Muñoz has shown no intentions of going anywhere and some reports say that he says the Marbella property is his home and he will not leave by the back door.He says that he will only leave if told to by a judge saying that he has lived there with Pantoja since 2003 until he was sent to jail, and she headed to her other home in Madrid.20minutos reports that Pantoja broke off with the ex Mayor by giving the news first to Hola! Magazine.

Guadalpín Banús and the Guadalpín Marbella announced a suspension of payments, the procedure ahead of bankruptcy.

Two hotels owned by the Aifos company in Marbella have announced a suspension of payments, the procedure ahead of bankruptcy. The new judge in Marcantile Court 1 in Málaga, Afredo Elías, announced the move on April 27 against the Promociones y Servicios Hoteleros Guadalpin company which has been running both hotels concerned, the Guadalpín Banús and the Guadalpín Marbella.
It means that both hotels will now be run by three administrators who are a lawyer, an economist, and a representative from the Caja Publicidad company, who comes from one of the four companies owed money and who had called for suspension of payments. Also reported to be demanding the process were several owners of apartments in the Marbella hotel. Total debt of the two hotels has been reported in El País as reaching 1.17 million €. Some 300 workers are employed across both establishments.

Three dead bodies have been found on the 'Los Naranjos' property in less than a year.

The man arrested in connection with their deaths is the owner of the finca and testing for gunpowder residue is being carried out on the dead men’s hands to determine if either of them shot at the suspect now in custody. There are some reports that both were carrying pistols, and the owner of the finca is reported to have claimed that he defended himself when the two men attacked his property.Autopsies carried out on the bodies of two men found dead on the finca ‘Los Naranjos’, on the Camino de los Martínez in Alhaurín de la Torre, on Saturday night have confirmed that they were shot at close range with a hunting shotgun. Neither man was carrying documentation and has yet to be identified, although reports from El Mundo newspaper indicate they could be from South America and are possibly from Colombia.Civil Guards have arrested the owner of a house in Alhaurín de la Torre where the bodies of two men were discovered on Saturday night.
The men, who were not carrying any identification, had been shot dead with a shooting rifle. The owner of 'Los Naranjos' allegedly shot the two men and says that he was defending himself. It is thought that the two men had entered the property with the intention of burglarly.Apparently, at around 10.30 p.m. the owner was alone in the house when he was alerted to the presence of the two men, who were carrying guns, in the grounds by the barking of his dogs, the owner claims that the two intruders fired their weapons first and he pulled the trigger of his to defend himself. However, before this is confirmed, the police will have to examine the gun shells and the bullet wounds on the bodies of the victims.
Autopsies are being carried out and the police are trying to identify the victims. The same sources said that they could be Colombian and the police are working with the Colombian embassy.
Three dead bodies have been found on the 'Los Naranjos' property in less than a year.On April 30th last year a teacher in Alhaurín de la Torre, worried that a mother hadn't come to collect her daughter, called a neighbour. When the neighbour found the villa all closed up she called the police.When the police arrived they found the body of the ex-wife of the owner floating in the pool. She had a serious wound on her mouth and her neck had been cut. It later came to light that she had been alive when she entered the water.The victim (35) lived in the home of her ex-husband, who she had reported to the police several times for threatening behaviour.
The ex was questioned by police but he had a solid alibi. He said that he was on a trip to Cadiz.In the area, the owner of 'Los Naranjos' is known for being an animal lover. He cared for many exotic species and abandoned animals.

Len and Helen Prior,Constitutional Court has ruled the proceedings which led to the demolition to be invalid

There was some good news last week for Len and Helen Prior, the British couple whose home in Vera was demolished as illegal in January last year: the Constitutional Court has ruled the proceedings which led to the demolition to be invalid. The court states that the Priors were not informed of those proceedings and were therefore denied their right to effective judicial protection. The demolition itself has also been declared as invalid.The house was bulldozed on a court order which ruled that it was built illegally on rustic land, despite the fact that planning permission was granted from Vera Town Hall. The Priors have been living in their garage ever since, with no running water or electricity supply . Europa Press reports the couple have claimed 600,000 € from the Town Hall in compensation for the demolition.

British Hell’s Angel arrested in Altea

Five of the 22 Hell’s Angels arrested across the country on Tuesday, had their headquarters in Altea. The three men and two women were released on police bail after questioning yesterday, despite a pistol ammunition and documents being taken from the home in Pla del Castell.The nationalities of those arrested in Altea are German, British, Belgium and Polish.Police continue to investigate the documents recovered in the case which is being led by the Instruction Court 4 in Benidorm.

Civil Guard are working to identify a body

Civil Guard are working to identify a body which was found in El Ejído on Thursday in the area of Camino Cortés. The find was made at around 6am near local greenhouses.The body is reported to be that of a male, and he is reported to have been shot at least once. The dead man was not carrying any documentation.

Department for Work and Pensions has extended its successful benefit cheats hotline to the Costa del Sol

Department for Work and Pensions has extended its successful benefit cheats hotline to the Costa del Sol and Canary Islands following its launch in Alicante in September 2008.Residents in these popular ex-pat areas can report suspected British benefit thieves to a local number and their concerns will be passed on by the operator of the hotline to a team of investigators in the UK.
Employment and Welfare Reform Minister Tony McNulty said:
"We are absolutely determined to stop benefit thieves stealing from the British taxpayer. Our commitment extends beyond the borders of the UK. Even in sunny Spain, we're closing in on benefit fraud."
A publicity campaign, 'We're closing in', in the local ex-pat media is raising awareness of the hotline as well as a dedicated web site where suspected British benefit thieves living abroad can be reported on-line.The total cost of benefit fraud committed by UK benefit recipients living in or travelling to countries abroad is an estimated £63 million a year. It involves a range of scams such as people on means-tested benefits going abroad but failing to declare their absence, and individuals working while claiming sickness benefits.This initiative is part of a growing relationship between Spain and the UK on social security issues that already includes agreements to data-match and share death notifications.
The Spanish benefit fraud hotline number is 900 554 440. It is free and confidential and operates from 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday. The hotline is run and funded by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), working with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office.
The dedicated web site address is www.dwp.gov.uk/benefit-thieves-spain and provides more detail on what constitutes benefit fraud along with an on line reporting form.

Amy Fitzpatrick grandmother spoke of her anguish at reports that a body found in Spain might be her beloved grandaughter

Amy Fitzpatrick grandmother of missing teenager Amy Fitzpatrick spoke of her anguish at reports that a body found in Spain might be her beloved grandaughter.Maura Donohoe (80) she suffered a "serious fright" when she saw a TV3 report about an unidentified body found near the town where the 15-year-old girl was last seen before she disappeared on January 1 last year."I got such a fright. I thought it could be Amy," said Maura, speaking at her home in Coolock in Dublin."But then I got a call from [Amy's mother] Audrey who told me the Spanish police told her it was a man's body." An intensive search of the region in the Costa del Sol at the beginning of 2008 failed to find any trace of the vanished Irish girl. Amy lived in Spain her mother, brother Dean, and Audrey's partner Dave Mahon.Maura added: "Audrey rang me immediately after the reports went out about the body. My stomach was going up and down. I got an awful fright and I couldn't settle down after it."I know if the Spanish police had found Amy's body they would have contacted the gardai who would have contacted us. But it was such a fright. Audrey spoke to Dean too to let him know it wasn't Amy's body. We will never give up hope for Amy. I've been getting loads of Masses said for her," she said."The Spanish newspapers reported it was the body of a man three days ago.Meanwhile, forensic experts continue to examine the body which was badly burned.A local person made the gruesome find on Sunday lunchtime as he was out walking near the Costa del Sol resort of Mijas.

Death of thousands of chiringuito restaurants

"Chiringuitos have existed for centuries, far longer than we have had ministries," Norberto del Castillo, of Andalucia's association of beach businesses, said.
Campaigners have denounced moves by the environment ministry to close down the thousands of chiringuito restaurants that spring up on beaches at the beginning of summer.Some 30,000 summer jobs and a cherished tradition of eating with sand between your toes are under threat, according to the campaigners, who want the chiringuitos to be treated as part of Spain's cultural heritage.The crackdown comes as part of the environment ministry's response to criticism that Spain's beaches are over-developed and under-protected. It has dusted off its "law of coasts", which bans building on the sand, and told the chiringuitos to move inland - on to concrete seafront walks or past the first line of asphalt."We have been here on the sand ever since tourism reached Malaga in the 1950s," Servando Cidoncha, who runs a bar on the Costa del Sol beach at Guadalmar, told the ABC newspaper. "If they take us inland we will stop being a chiringuito and become just another restaurant. The English and Germans come to us attracted by a sense of tradition. Moving us would destroy that."Politicians from all parties have thrown their support behind moves to save the chiringuitos, which jointly turn over some €900m (£810m) a year. "They are not in any way an aggression against the environment," Javier Arenas, leader of the opposition People's party in Andalucia, said. "And this is not a moment to be throwing away income and jobs.""We socialists are not going to stop until the future of the chiringuitos is assured," said Miguel Ángel Heredia, an MP for Spain's ruling party, representing the southern Costa del Sol.The beach bars are to ask customers to sign a petition this summer urging the ministry to rethink.

600 shortfall in the number of policemen and women placed across the Costas.

All the police stations in the province have a deficit of numbers which is now described in some places as ‘alarming’. Biggest shortages are seen in Estepona, Torremolinos, Vélez-Málaga and Antequera.

Latest data shows the number of National Police in the province is at 81% capacity, 2,492 instead of the 3,067 required.Spokesman from the SUP police union in Málaga, Manuel Expósito, told the Diario Sur newspaper that apart from tourism the nature of the Costa del Sol was that there were more inhabitants than those officially registered on the census, and this led to more police work. In addition the Costa del Sol remains a crime hotspot with 61% of the crimes committed in Eastern Andalucía, that’s to say in the provinces of Málaga, Granada, Jaén and Almería.

Juan Carmelo Santana found guilty of murdering a British couple on Fuerteventura has been sentenced to 39 years in prison

Juan Carmelo Santana found guilty of murdering a British couple on Fuerteventura has been sentenced to 39 years in prison for the killings. In a ruling released this Monday reported by the EFE news agency, 42 year old Juan Carmelo Santana has also been ordered to pay 30,000 € compensation to the couple’s son.The jury found the accused guilty on two counts of murder, and he was sentenced by the provincial court in Las Palmas to 17 years in prison for the murder of 58 year old Tina Jane Johnson, and to 22 years for killing her husband, Brian Johnson, aged 60.It happened in July 2006 in a flat in El Cotillo, near La Oliva, where the accused lived with his son in a flat he rented from the British couple. The Johnsons had gone there to ask their tenant for the three months he owed in unpaid rent. He is reported to have struck Mrs Johnson with his hand when she told him to look for somewhere else to live and, after pushing her to the floor, hit her on the head with a hammer. He then violently attacked Mr Johnson, also with the hammer, hitting him at least 10 times on the head.He kept their bodies hidden in the flat for an unknown length of time, and buried them beneath a pile of rocks in countryside in Malpaís de Mascona, not far from La Oliva.
The sentence noted that the accused had admitted to the murders, but that he also said he didn’t know why he had done it.

Bernard Madoff, the disgraced New York broker, sent 150 million dollars to a bank in Gib.

Bernard Madoff, the disgraced New York broker, sent 150 million dollars to a bank in Gibraltar. El Mundo reports that the transfer was made in the name of a company based in the Virgin Islands called Vizcaya Partners Ltd. a month before he was arrested.
The lawyer given the job of liquidating Madoff’s assets, Irving Picard, is now trying to recover the money from the branch of the Swiss bank, Jabob Safra, on Gibraltar.

Elche treasury councillor, Maria Angeles Aviles, could be facing charges of accountancy fraud

Elche treasury councillor, Maria Angeles Aviles, could be facing charges of accountancy fraud, along with the mayor, Alejandro Soler. Elche’s chief prosecutor, Ramon Siles, has announced that the decision to prosecute was taken after it was revealed that Aviles had signed five payments which were judged to be irregular and that Mayor Soler had signed two irregular payments, worth 5,620 euros.The monies in dispute were allegedly used to fund the Socialist Party (PSOE) political campaign promoted in a local newspaper. In the course of investigating the payments signed by Soler, the Popular Party discovered five more suspect payments, in the sum of some 11,000 euros, which they have submitted to the anti-corruption prosecution in Alicante. Whilst the prosecutor considers that Aviles should be charged with the same crimes as Soler, the judge, who is currently studying the relevant documents, has not taken any firm decision as yet. Aviles has been nominated to stand as a Socialist Party member for the European elections next June and the secretary of the Socialist Party in Alicante, Ana Barcelo, reiterated that the Party will continue to support the mayor, because they believe that he has simply made a mistake. They say that he has explained the circumstances and has ordered an audit to examine all the payments made during the last three years.

Lee Ward, 28, was killed instantly in a car crash close to Marbella, on the Costa del Sol.

Lee Ward, 28, was killed instantly in a car crash close to Marbella, on the Costa del Sol. His grieving father, entrepreneur and executive Charles, 48, told of his devastation last night.
Writing on a Facebook tribute page set up in his son’s memory, he said: “God, how I miss you. You will never leave my thoughts or my heart forever my first born.” Amazingly a passenger, believed to be a male friend, is thought to have survived the horror by leaping clear of the car as it fell. He is believed to be fighting for life in hospital. Locals told yesterday how they saw the white £150,000 Gallardo convertible skidding as it crested a hill overlooking the exclusive Los Flamingos golf course. One said: “It careered over the edge and fell more than 250ft over the cliff, landing on its roof by the side of one of the greens. Lee had no chance but his passenger managed to leap clear of the car and survived with very serious injuries. “Lee was a very popular person locally and it’s a real tragedy.” Pals said his wife Kati had decided not to go with him just minutes before the crash. Yesterday more than 200 mourners attended Lee’s funeral at a church in Marbella as friends continued to pay tribute on the web. One said of Lee: “A guy that lived life to the full and was full of desire. Wherever you are, they’re lucky to have you — I know we were.” On Lee’s Facebook site a pal wrote: “I will say a prayer and dance to good house music — Lee Richard Ward keep dancing — RIP.” 29 year old British man has died and two other people, possibly also British have been injured in a traffic accident in Benahavís near Marbella.The vehicle in which the three were travelling left the road, fell down a drop and burst into flames. One of the occupants was trapped inside and had to be rescued by the fire service.There are reports that one of the injured is 38 years old and one was taken to the Costa del Sol hospital in Marbella for urgent treatment.It happened on the road between Benahavís and Cancelada, the CV-11, and happened at about 10pm on Saturday night. La Opinión de Málaga reports that the vehicle had Swiss number plates. Another said: “Thinking back on your antics leaves me wishing there could be just one last time. Now I know why they say the good die young.”

Chiringuito at Bikini Beach to be demolished

Coastal Authority has fined a chiringuito beach restaurant in Estepona 240,000 €, but the local Town Hall is calling for the structure to be demolished. The council says that if the owner of the restaurant does not demolish it himself, they will do so.The chiringuito at Bikini Beach is considered to be guilty of increasing its plot size from 100 to 508 square metres.
The regulations from the Coastal Authority, dependant on the Ministry for the Environment, say that the maximum size for a chiringuito is 400 square metres, with 100 more for a terrace and upto 300 more for sunbeds.Local councillor for beaches, Carmen Ocaña, said the problem at Bikini Beach is that the terrace had reached 500 square metres and that Balinese beds had been used when the licence is for sunbeds.Other chiringuito owners are reported by La Opinión de Málaga to have complained about unfair competition from Bikini Beach and have said the restaurant should be white in colour and not brown.

Juan Carlos Juárez, the Mayor of La Línea, faces a possible 28 years in prison

Juan Carlos Juárez, the Mayor of La Línea, faces a possible 28 years in prison following the presentation on Monday of the private accusation in the Roseworld case.It relates to an allegedly illegal procedure in the sale of municipal land to the company Roseworld and its onward sale to another company at a later date. Juárez also faces a 56 year ban from public office.Another nine people are charged in the case, including three members of the Mayor’s governing team. Canal Sur Radio reports that the text of the papers presented also requests bail of 60,000 € from each of the accused.
The text of the public prosecutor’s submission in the case is not yet known

Resale property prices on the Costa del Sol have fallen by upto 20% in some areas, and Mijas down 18.6%, Manilva down 20.7%, Estepona down 17.5%.

Resale property prices on the Costa del Sol have fallen by upto 20% in some areas, and Mijas down 18.6%, Manilva down 20.7%, Estepona down 17.5%, and Torrox down 17%, are all in the list of the top 20 towns in Spain to see the largest reductions in price.Arteixo in A Coruña and San Pedro del Pinatar in Murcia are the places where house prices have fallen the most, by 23.4% and 22%.Marbella and Málaga remain among the most expensive places to purchase property across the country. In Málaga the average price per square metre is now 2,287 €, down 10.4% on a year ago, and that places Málaga in a list of nine provinces where the fall in price has reached double digits. The others are Navarra, Almería, Ciudad Real, Zaragoza, Lugo, Valencia, Toledo and Tarragona.The data comes from Fotocasa and the IESE.

29 year old British man has died and two other people, possibly also British have been injured in a traffic accident in Benahavís near Marbella.

29 year old British man has died and two other people, possibly also British have been injured in a traffic accident in Benahavís near Marbella.The vehicle in which the three were travelling left the road, fell down a drop and burst into flames. One of the occupants was trapped inside and had to be rescued by the fire service.There are reports that one of the injured is 38 years old and one was taken to the Costa del Sol hospital in Marbella for urgent treatment.It happened on the road between Benahavís and Cancelada, the CV-11, and happened at about 10pm on Saturday night.
La Opinión de Málaga reports that the vehicle had Swiss number plates.

Four suspects were in custody in Spain in the January slaying of a reputed Colombian drug trafficker

Four suspects were in custody in Spain in the January slaying of a reputed Colombian drug trafficker, authorities said.The suspects, identified only as three Colombian nationals and a Romanian, were being questioned Friday in the slaying of Leonidas Vargas, 59, who was fatally shot while being treated in the cardiology wing of Madrid's October 12th Hospital, the Spanish news agency EFE reported Saturday.Police told EFE they also seized guns, ammunition and bulletproof vests.Vargas had been arrested in Madrid in July 2006 and was awaiting trial in a cocaine-trafficking case. He had been on a list of Colombia's most wanted drug traffickers.

Mike Kerr paid nearly £200,000 as a deposit for two holiday homes on the Marbella Vista Golf is fighting to get his cash back

Mike Kerr who paid nearly £200,000 as a deposit for two holiday homes on the Costa del Sol is fighting to get his cash back after the properties were deemed illegal.
Mike Kerr, a design engineer from Knaphill, signed a contract with developer Marbella Vista Golf, which is owned by Moleón, in 2003 to build two dream properties in Elviria, near Marbella, on the southern coast of Spain.Mr Kerr has spent 6,500 Euros (more than £5,900) in legal fees so far, as well as paying a total deposit for the two properties of 200,000 Euros (around £182,000). The total cost of the two holiday homes is 642,000 Euros (more than £590,000).But his dream turned into a nightmare when the properties were branded illegal in 2005 because the developer breached the planning permission. Since then, Mr Kerr has been caught up in a succession of court hearings and legal wrangling.He said: “I wanted to make an investment and have a couple of holiday homes. The developer had planning permission for 30 town houses but built 192 apartments.”Mr Kerr explained that the planning permission was retracted so when the properties were completed, Marbella Vista Golf was then unable to obtain a licence for first occupation.He said: “If they can’t get that, we can’t officially live there or rent out the properties and they are almost impossible to sell. “I tried to get a mortgage close to completion and was told by the bank that the properties were illegal and I would have to get a solicitor.“I asked the developer to cancel the contract and return the deposit but Marbella Vista Golf refused because it considered the properties to be complete and said we should go ahead with completion.“But it was illegal so I tried to enforce the bank guarantee.”Bank guarantees from developers have been compulsory in Spain for 40 years for off-plan properties — those that have not been fully constructed at the time of purchase. The guarantees ensure that if a developer does not build on time, goes into administration or does not build at all, buyers can have their money returned. Mr Kerr said he had a guarantee with Spanish bank, Banco Popular Hipotecario (BPH). He added: “I tried to get the deposit back. We spoke to the lawyer who said we could get our deposit back but the bank said no.“You hear about developers not standing up to their side of the contract but banks issue guarantees all the time and you would expect them to honour them.”Mr Kerr and a group of people involved in disputes about five additional properties took the bank to the Court of First Instance in Madrid.He said: “We won the first time but BPH appealed to the High Court and the original result was overturned. “The bank said the properties were not illegal and were licensed. We appealed to the High Court and we lost but there were mistakes made. The court would not re-open the case but said we did not have to pay legal fees.“We went to the Supreme Court but it refused to hear the case, stating it did not deal with that type of case.“We are now taking the case to the Constitutional Court to say it was not heard properly.”As yet, a date has not been set for this hearing.He said: “I have spent a couple of hours a day on the phone and have had to pay for trips to Spain.“It absorbs the holiday as I have to attend a couple of meetings each time I visit Spain and there are the invisible costs because I am self-employed. But there are a lot of people who are a lot worse off than me and have put their whole life savings into the project.”Ruth Genda, from Leicestershire, is in the same situation as Mr Kerr. She presented a petition to the governor of the Bank of Spain, who said in an article in the Spanish newspaper El Pais that banks should be honouring guarantees.A petition has also been submitted to Prime Minister Gordon Brown asking him to intervene and help the group of British buyers.Mr Kerr has also been in touch with members of the European parliament who represent the south-east area.But he said: “They have not been able to assist us in any way. They have responded to letters but they will not get involved in individual cases.But the issue involves more than 30,000 apartments in Spain and it is in no way individual.”Speaking to the News and Mail, Víctor Francisco Sánchez, a solicitor representing the development company, denied the properties were illegal and said the licence of first occupation had been approved provisionally and was on the verge of being approved definitively.A spokesman for the bank said he was unable to talk to third parties about customers.

unnamed British man in his mid thirties has died after falling from the balcony of a hotel when he was trying to flee from the Guardia Civil.

unnamed British man in his mid thirties has died after falling from the balcony of a hotel when he was trying to flee from the Guardia Civil.The man died around 5am on Friday morning after falling from the first floor of the hotel in Guardamar, Alicante, and suffered severe head injuries. It’s thought he was trying to escape after the Guardia Civil were called because of his allegedly drunken and rowdy behaviour which had been disturbing other hotel guests.He was taken by helicopter to hospital but died shortly after.Información newspaper reports that the two British people in the room refused to open the door to the Guardia Civil when they arrived, and when the Guardia managed to gain access one of the men tried to escape over the balcony which was only three metres high.An autopsy has been carried out and the friend of the deceased has been arrested.

29 year old Romanian man who is accused of killing his 25 year old girlfriend

29 year old Romanian man who is accused of killing his 25 year old girlfriend, also Romanian, by stabbing her with a pair of scissors 33 times is facing a demand for a 20 year prison sentence from the prosecutor in Málaga.The accused told the court that he carried out the attack in a fit of jealousy after he heard she was leaving him for her boss who had promised to lift her out of poverty. His defence team says that he was under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time and was now very sorry for his action. The case continues.Meanwhile a 40 year old man has been arrested for beating his wife in Marbella, and using a baseball bat and knife to threaten two police who went to scene. It happened last Saturday.
And another two Málaga men, aged 32 and 44, were arrested on domestic violence charges in the city after threatening a 28 year old woman, against whom one had already a distancing order. It happened on Sunday in the ‘25 años de Paz’

Search for the body of Marta del Castillo continues today at the main rubbish tip for the city, in Alcalá de Guadaira.

Search for the body of Marta del Castillo, the 17 year old from Sevilla who is thought to have been killed on January 24, continues today at the main rubbish tip for the city, in Alcalá de Guadaira.Scientific and Judicial Police are supervising the search which has now reached the waste which was thrown away on the day concerned. Bags of rubbish are now being search by hand at the site.It comes after the self-confessed killer of Marta, Miguel Carcaño, changed his story about what he had done with the body, from throwing her into the Guadalquivir river, to placing her in a rubbish container at the end of his street.

Andalucia must must pay 100 million euros for failing to prevent the capture of young boquerones and chanquetes

Andalucia must must pay 100 million euros for failing to prevent the capture of rare fishSpain has been fined a record 100 million euros for illegal fishing off Andalucia. The massive fine has been levied after constant warnings about the illicit capture of, in particular, young boquerones and chanquetes.The European Court has ruled that Spain has continually failed to control the illegal fishing in its waters.In particular it is being punished for the regular catches of underweight and baby fish.It has failed to stop a ban of the endangered chanquete, which has been in force since 1989.A source at Spain’s fishing ministry told Diario Sur, that there were so many illegal fisherman that the price had dropped from 150 euros a kilo to just 30 euros.He estimated that up to 70 “bolicheros” as they are known head out every night from Torre del Mar, in the Axarquia alone.Over a dozen bars and restaurants in central Malaga have been denounced for selling the illegal fish.
A further 100 or more are selling the fish up the Costa del Sol.At the central fish market at Huelin inspectors found 20 kilos of chanquetes for sale, with around 25 kilos of other prohibited fish being sold just outside.Now Spain’s Ministry of Fishing is to clamp down by levying a new fine of up to 60,000 euros for the catch of more than 100 kilos of underweight fish. The smallest fine has been increased to 1000 euros for illegal fishing.It is also ordering the immediate seizure of any boats or lorries involved in the fishing or delivery of the products.Over the last month some 30 boats have been seized by members of the Guardia Civil.But, as the source, at the ministry explained: “There are lorry drivers who are driving all over Spain every day taking baby boquerones and chanquetes, who when they are stopped pay a fine and then continue doing it as it is so lucrative.”

Marbella Town Hall has issued a statement confirming that work to demolish a home built illegally in the municipality at Golf Río Real

Marbella Town Hall has issued a statement confirming that work to demolish a home built illegally in the municipality at Golf Río Real, by the

promoter Naviro Inmobiliaria, has now started.The building, which is one of 34 at the site, lacks a municipal licence, was unoccupied, and considered impossible to include in the PGOU Urban Plan.

The demolition is being carried out by Naviro to comply with a municipal order passed on September 9 last year and has an estimated cost of 47,500 € which it must pay. Naviro is owned by the Granada businessman, José Ávila Rojas, who is himself indicted in the Malaya corruption case in the town.The PGOU first showed the plot as green land and then with the revision for public services.Another building in Lindavista Alta is in the same circumstances

Baltasar Garzon, Spain’s most famous judge, is again at the centre of the country’s political life, this time over a corruption probe

Baltasar Garzon, Spain’s most famous judge, is again at the centre of the country’s political life, this time over a corruption probe that is becoming increasingly embarrassing for the conservative opposition. Conservative spokeswoman Soraya Saenz de Santamaria has indirectly accused Garzon of acting in complicity with Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero’s socialists in an attempt to tarnish the reputation of her People’s Party (PP). Half a year earlier, the internationally prestigious magistrate at Madrid’s powerful National Court was forced to drop an unprecedented inquiry into human rights abuses under Spain’s 1939-75 dictator Francisco Franco Garzon, however, knows that he is admired as fervently as he is hated, and that apparent defeats often turn into partial victories, as investigations which are shelved later break new ground. Some see the controversial judge as an incorruptible fighter for universal justice, while others claim that his vanity and hunger for fame know no limits. Few, however, would dispute that the notoriety of judges like Garzon reflects a certain politicisation of Spanish courts, which handle politically sensitive matters such as corruption or terrorism.
Elegant in his sharp suits, glasses and gray hair combed backwards, Garzon, 53, hardly ever talks to the press, but seems to be always making headlines.
A list of people Garzon has investigated reads like a “Who’s Who” of the criminal world: drug lords, arms traffickers, Basque and Islamist terrorists, corrupt politicians and foreign dictators. Garzon helped to corner the militant Basque separatist group ETA by cracking down not only on the group itself, but also on related organisations, leaving the radicals increasingly isolated.
By attempting to extradite former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet in 1998, Garzon helped to launch a judicial human rights crusade in which Spanish judges have played a prominent role. Garzon has investigated alleged human rights abuses ranging from Argentina to Western Sahara, and even ordered the arrest of Osama bin Laden.
With a new probe by Garzon’s colleague Fernando Andreu into a 2002 Gaza bombing now creating tension with Israel, the government sees the judges’ human rights campaign as going too far, and plans to limit their jurisdiction mainly to cases involving Spanish citizens. While investigating human rights violations abroad, however, Spanish courts had not tackled the ones at home, and Garzon broke a taboo when launching a probe in 2008 into the alleged killings of more than 100,000 leftists during and after the 1936-39 civil war that brought Franco to power.
Prosecutors close to the conservative opposition used judicial arguments to pressure Garzon to abandon the inquiry, which could now be taken over by regional courts.
The row over Francoism paved the way for an open showdown between Garzon and the PP, after the judge named about 40 people suspects in an investigation into an alleged corruption network involving PP- governed regions and municipalities.
The party made the most of a revelation by the press that Garzon had gone on a hunting expedition with justice minister Mariano Fernandez Bermejo, accusing the two of plotting against the PP and forcing Bermejo to resign. The PP also lodged a judicial complaint against Garzon, who finally transferred part of the PP probe to other courts on Thursday, but simultaneously presented new charges against senior PP representatives including Valencian regional prime minister Francisco Camps.
Those accusing Garzon of acting out of political motives point to his brief stint with socialist politics in the early 1990s.
Garzon did, however, also pursue prime minister Felipe Gonzalez’ socialist government over the semi-official GAL death squads that killed ETA suspects in the 1980s, contributing to the end of the 14- year Gonzalez era in 2006.
Garzon’s critics slam him as a would-be politician who does a sloppy job dealing with lower-level cases, but such accusations are also tinged with envy.
Admirers point to the courage and hard work of the judge, son of a modest family from the southern region of Andalusia, who is accustomed to receiving threats and has to live surrounded by bodyguards.
“There are cases in which a judge’s life is not worth more than how much you are prepared to pay the hired assassin at hand,” Garzon wrote in his book Un Mundo Sin Miedo (A World Without Fear). Some human rights groups have proposed Garzon for the Nobel Peace Prize, but the personal cost of the judge’s brilliant career was also revealed recently, when he was hospitalised for an anxiety attack

Princess Anne Wednesday arrived in Gibraltar on a three-day official visit that has sparked complaints from Spain

Princess Anne Wednesday arrived in Gibraltar on a three-day official visit that has sparked complaints from Spain which contests London's rule over the strategic territory.The princess flew into Gibraltar on a Royal Air Force jet for her second visit in four years to the largely self-governing British outpost which lies at the western entrance to the Mediterranean.Her programme includes a walk-about in the city centre, a tour of a British naval base headquarters and the opening of a military medical centre which carries her name and is located on the isthmus that links the Rock to the land frontier with Spain.As with previous trips by British royals to Gibraltar, the visit has met with opposition in Spain.Spanish Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Angel Lossada telephoned the British Ambassador in Madrid, Denise Holt, to express Madrid's displeasure when he was first informed of the princess' visit.Centre-right daily newspaper El Mundo called the visit "inopportune" in an editorial last month while Jose Ignacio Landaluce, a lawmaker with the conservative opposition Popular Party, blasted it as "an affront to Spain".The visit comes as Madrid steps up claims that Gibraltar does not have territorial waters because this was not specified in the 1713 treaty of Utrecht under which Spain ceded the Rock to Britain, following its capture in 1704.Britain does not agree with Spain's contention. The naval base which Princess Anne will tour on Thursday houses two armed Royal Navy patrol boats which are the first line of defence of British territorial waters around the Rock.The princess visited Gibraltar in 2004 to mark the 300th anniversary of British rule over the territory.Spain also protested in 1954 when Queen Elizabeth II made her first and only visit to Gibraltar.Zapatero administration consider the visit inopportune, and ‘wounding the sensitivity’ of the Spanish people.In particular they are upset that the Princess will be opening a military clinic, which will bear her name, while on the Rock, the Princess Royal Medical Centre, and that it is built, according to the Spanish, on the isthmus which links the Rock to the mainland, an area which Spain did not hand to the British Crown in the Treaty of Utrecht.

British journalist Selina Scott,has denied any building irregularities in the construction of her home at Andratx on Mallorca

Spanish website www.ultimahora.es reports that British journalist Selina Scott, who is best known in Spain for an interview with King Juan Carlos in 1992, has denied any building irregularities in the construction of her home at Andratx on Mallorca.
British journalist purchased undeveloped land in Andratx on Mallorca where hundreds of properties have been affectedThe judge investigating the allegations of irregularities has called the Land Ordination Director of the previous regional government on the island, Jaume Massot, the architect Jaime Burnet, and the lawyer, Jacobo Rodríguez Miranda, for what is known as piece 50 in the Andratx case which refers to Selina Scott’s property.Reports indicate she will be called to make a new statement, but has already told the National Police that she purchased the undeveloped land and handed over the construction to the Construcciones Alemany company. She said that she was given a licence for the property by the Andratx Town Hall, and then later granted permission to carry out reforms. The architect, Jaume Massot, told the court on Wednesday that if he was asked today, he would not grant a licence for the Scott dwelling.The case is just one of 68 alleged irregularities in Andratx which remain under investigation, and Selina Scott is one of the more than 200 people who have been called to declare by the investigating judge. The Mayor of Andratx, Eugenio Hidalgo was arrested in November 2006.

James “Pancake” Taylor identified as Gang Leader in Costa Drugs War

James “Pancake” Taylor was picked up by police trying to stop a violent
drugs war that has broken out on the Costa del Sol. Liverpool gangster was today behind bars in Spain after being arrested for attempted murder.James “Pancake” Taylor was picked up by police trying to stop a violent drugs war that has broken out on the Costa del Sol.The 29-year-old is also being investigated over claims he is the ringleader of a gang which has brought terror to the sunshine streets.
A leaked report to a Spanish judge over a spate of shootings says the gang is a “worldwide organisation that is dedicated mainly to drug trafficking, targeted assassinations and has a hierarchical structure among the members, almost all of whom originate in Liverpool and Manchester”.Taylor was arrested over the shooting of a Brit after a nightclub brawl last August.

Sun Village urbanisation at the foot of the La Albera Sierra in Palau-saverdera, is to be demolished after years of legal fighting

Sun Village urbanisation at the foot of the La Albera Sierra in Palau-saverdera, is to be demolished after years of legal fighting. The development has been deemed to illegal by the Catalan High Court TSJC, and owners have been given six months to knock their properties down.The local Town Hall has attacked the court’s decision to rule out any other option in the case which dates back to 2001 when the CiU Mayor, Narcís Deusedas, approved the development of 42 luxury flats on land classified as being for local facilities. Under the plan the land could hold a hotel, or even a supermarket, but not residential accommodation.Most of the property owners are foreigners, many of them British and Dutch, but only three or four families live there year round. The owners are demanding compensation of 310,000 € per property from the Town Hall, claiming the Mayor is to blame for their predicament. He’s commented that the Town Hall could not face such a high claim, and hopes that lawyer can come up with a solution.

Parents of Gary Dunne have been in Benalmadena cemetery, near Malaga, to see his coffin for the first time

Family of a builder murdered in Spain today finally got his body back after a heartbreaking three-year wait.The parents of Gary Dunne have been in Benalmadena cemetery, near Malaga, to see his coffin for the first time.The West Derby family fought a long battle over Gary's remains after the 22-year-old was killed by a machete-wielding thug on the Costa del Sol in 2006.Legal complications and complex foreign hygiene laws meant the family came up against countless hurdles to repatriate him.Today Stephen Dunne spoke from Spain and described his emotions on finally being reunited with his son.Mr Dunne said: “They pulled the coffin from a concrete wall, smashing through to get it. The lid had caved in and I gave it a quick kiss.“They transferred Gary into a new coffin.“They brought Gary out exactly on the third anniversary of his death - the coincidence was eerie.“It all happened so fast and Lesley [Gary’s mum] and Ricky [brother] couldn’t get out here in time.
“It was a huge relief to finally get Gary. But it was horrendous at the same time. I don’t mind saying I was crying and in bits.”Mr Dunne attended a court hearing on Monday when a judge formally allowed papers to be signed agreeing the release.
The family is due to land back in Manchester tomorrow.He will be taken to a Wirral funeral director ahead of his March 20 funeral at Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral.

Giususeppe U arrested Camorra bosses refer to the Spain's Mediterranean coast as "Costa Nostra" or "our coast"

The latest Italian mafia leader to be arrested was once a security guard for an Italian government minister, say Spanish police. Police in Spain said Monday they had detained a leader of the Italian mafia who was once a security guard for an Italian government minister, in the latest in a string of arrests of top mafia figures.The man, identified as 48-year-old Giususeppe U, is wanted in Italy for drug trafficking and is suspected of involvement in a 1997 murder in Rome, police said in a statement. He was arrested in the southern port of Marbella."The fugitive, an ex-state policeman in Italy and a former bodyguard to an Italian minister, is considered to be one of the main leaders of a Calabrese mafia organisation by the authorities in his country," the statement said.Police suspect he ran an international drugs trafficking operation from Morocco where he lived and where he is thought to have held meetings with other members of the mafia clan, the statement added.Since 2006 more than a dozen leaders of the Camorra and other Italian mafia groups have been arrested in Spain, the main entryway into Europe for cocaine from Latin America and hashish from North Africa.In January Spanish police arrested two Camorra bosses, Antonio Caiazzo, 50, and Francesco Simeoli, 40, as they left a restaurant at an upscale Madrid neighbourhood.The arrests have highlighted the growing menace posed by the Italian mafia in Spain.Italian journalist Roberto Saviano, the author of "Gomorra," a best-selling expose of the criminal underworld in Naples, has said several mafia clans have transferred what he termed "their most risky activities," such as drug-running, to Spain, particularly to Barcelona.
Speaking in Barcelona earlier this month, he said Camorra bosses refer to the Spain's Mediterranean coast as "Costa Nostra" or "our coast", alluding to the Sicilian mafia's "Cosa Nostra".Giususeppe U., is wanted in Italy for drug trafficking and is suspected of involvement in a 1997 murder in Rome, police said in a statement. * * * "The fugutive, an ex state policeman in Italy and a former bodyguard to an Italian minister, is considered to be one of the main leaders of a Calabrese mafia organization by the authorities in his country," the statement said. Police suspect he ran an international drugs trafficking operation from Morocco where he lived and where he is thought to have held meetings with other members of the mafia clan, the statement added.

Maxine Daniels, 60, was hit over the head with a crowbar, after a night out with friends.

Maxine Daniels, 60, was hit over the head with a crowbar, after a night out with friends. British woman has been knocked unconscious during a brutal attack in Peurto Duquesa . The author and medium, who lives in Estepona, had a brain scan after being left for dead in the popular port.Unconscious for around ten minutes she awoke to discover her handbag had been stolen, along with her passport, money, bankcards and driving licence. “Someone tripped me from behind and I was then hit over the head with something very heavy, probably a crowbar.“A couple of millimetres to the left of my temple and I would have been dead.”Daniels, from London, managed to drive around the corner to some friends, who took her to the hospital.She was told, after a brain scan, that fortunately there was no internal damage.“However, they told me I was lucky to have survived the attack,” said Maxine, who is still traumatised and having nightmares.there have been a number of other assaults in the port.According to a member of Age Concern, who has been helping Maxine get a new passport, a couple have also been attacked.The couple, who are believed to be Spanish, were attacked by an Eastern European gang of three apparently carrying a crowbar.A British man was also assaulted in the same way, after allegedly catching a glimpse of the attackers.He was so shaken by the assault he has now returned to the UK.

ski lift chair at the beginners run of the Sierra Nevada resort in Granada came away from its pulleys

A ski lift chair at the beginners run of the Sierra Nevada resort in Granada came away from its pulleys and dragged another six chairs down with it. The accident happened at 10.17, when the area was not overly busy. Nevertheless, 23 people were injured, mostly only slightly, although a 37 year old woman remains in intensive care with damage to her abdomen. The ski run was cordoned off and an investigation is under way.Three out of the 23 were seriously injured after the ski lift plunged several metres below to the ground.A ski lift malfunctioned Monday in the Sierra Nevada in southern Spain, injuring 23 people, three of them seriously, a spokesman for the ski resort where the accident happened said.The injured suffered bone fractures and bruises when the lift servicing a beginners piste snapped, sending them plunging to the ground several metres below, the spokesman for Cetursa told AFP by telephone.About a dozen of the injured were taken to hospital, including the three seriously injured who were transported by helicopter. The remaining were slightly injured and were treated at the scene.The Sierra Nevada near Granada, with peaks more than 3,000 metres (9,800 feet) high, is one of Spain's main destinations for ski fans.

Ronald B was taken to the Costa del Sol Hospital in Marbella where he was treated for serious injuries to his left eye and the area surrounding it

Ronald B. (53), a business owner from Ipswich in England, tried to help a girl in distress and came off worst. Doctors think that the tourist who has been holidaying on the Costa del Sol regularly for 15 years could lose the sight in his left eye.
Events took place last Monday in Nueva Andalucía in Marbella. The victim, Ronald B. (53) from Ipswich, had been having dinner with his wife in a Puerto Banús restaurant. The couple returned to their apartment at 9.30 p.m. and Ronald decided to have a drink in the bar downstairs while his wife went upstairs.The only people in the bar were three women and Ronald started to talk to one of them. The victim told National Police officers that while he was talking to the woman he noticed that two Englishmen "with Liverpool accents" had come into the establishment.
Ronald told the officers that these two men approached one of the women "very aggressively", but he couldn't clarify if they actually attacked or pushed her.
Ronald decided to step in. In his statement he insisted that he tried to help the girl by putting himself in the middle to try and separate them and that was when he was hit hard and lost consciousness. The next thing he knew an Irishman was helping him back to his apartment. According to Ronald's wife, who went to look for the girl to find out exactly what had happened, the girl confirmed that the two men were attacking her and Ronald had tried to defend her. The girl said that Ronald fell to the floor after being hit the first time but the attackers repeatedly kicked him in the head when he was down.Ronald was taken to the Costa del Sol Hospital in Marbella where he was treated for serious injuries to his left eye and the area surrounding it. Hospital sources explained that there is a high risk of the victim losing the sight in that eye.
It was hospital staff that informed the police of what had happened and officers from the Marbella police station went to the hospital to take a statement from the victim. Officers are now trying to identify and find Ronald's attackers.
Meanwhile Ronald's wife has left the apartment where the couple were staying and has gone to other accommodation, the location of which has not been disclosed for fear that the attackers, who she says she has been told are dangerous people related to crime, will try to find her. Her daughter, who came from Ipswich, has said that she is scared that Ronald, who has four children, might not be able to see his grandchildren again.
Ronald who was taken into to the Costa del Sol Hospital was transferred to the Hospital Civil in Malaga city to have facial tests, but his room was kept in Marbella for him to go back to for recovery. Hospital staff said that he would definitely have to have surgery and his family still don't know when they will be able to return to the UK.

Las Dunas Hotel in Estepona not paid its employees in over four months.

Las Dunas Hotel in Estepona (Costa del Sol) was not long ago considered Spain’s most expensive hotel, with some rooms costing as much as 6,000 euros per night. Today it stands on the spotlight for not having paid its employees in over four months.The Hotel Las Dunas employs over 100 employees, all of which have not been paid since November 2008, according to the president of the comittee of the company, Juan Luis Diaz.During 2007, the hotel Las Dunas became one of the most exclusive hotels in the whole of the Spanish peninsula, with its 88 suites equipped with all kinds of luxuries, its Spa, restaurants and huge variety of added services. Occupancy rates hovered around 90%.The employees have announced strikes on the 6th, 7th, 11th, and 12th March.The 110 workers at the hotel described by the El Mundo newspaper as the most expensive hotel in Spain, Las Dunas in Estepona, have gone four months without pay.The owners had promised to pay the workers last Friday, but reports indicate that this did not happen, and now the workers have announced strike action for March 6,7,11 and 12.Workers representative, Juan Luis Díaz, said they have not been paid since November, and the promise for last Friday was not met. Union CCOO claims that a combination of the crisis and bad management has led to the current situation.
The case will be heard on Wednesday in the arbitration service for the resolution of labour disputes in Andalucía, SERCLA.

Socialist Mayor of the village of Alcaucín in Málaga is among 13 people arrested in Spain’s latest corruption scandal.

latest corruption case in Spain has broken in the Axarquía area of Málaga province

Socialist Mayor of the village of Alcaucín in Málaga is among 13 people arrested in Spain’s latest corruption scandal.José Manuel Martín Alba, a labourer by trade, has been detained as investigations continue into the building and sale of homes on non-buildable land. Searches were carried out on Friday in the homes of the Mayor and members of his family.The PSOE Socialist party says they will expel all those indicted from the party.The 13 arrests occurred in Málaga and Huelva and also include the Mayor’s two daughters, and José Mora, chief of municipal architecture in the Dipitación de Málaga, the provincial government.Also detained are two architects and other constructors and alleged intermediaries.El Mundo says that the investigation could move to neighbouring La Viñuela, where the Socialist Mayor already faces different investigations on town planning irregularities.Many of the properties sold in the area, have been purchased by foreigners.

Special anti-drug unit set up by the Spanish tax administration agency has intercepted a vessel carrying 5 tons of cocaine in the Atlantic,

Special anti-drug unit set up by the Spanish tax administration agency has intercepted a vessel carrying 5 tons of cocaine in the Atlantic, the agency said Friday. The five Venezuelan crew of the 16-metre-long Dona Fortuna were detained in the operation, which took place some 1,500 kilometres off the Canary Islands on Thursday. The cocaine, which was believed to come from Colombia, would have been worth about 250 million euros (300 million dollars) on the black market. The traffickers were believed to have intended to take the drug to Spain's north-western region of Galicia, which would have acted as its gateway into the European market.
The operation followed the seizure of four tons of cocaine off Galicia six weeks ago.

Robert Orchard, 65,had lived on the ‘Costa Del Crime’ for 13 years but had not been tempted to join the drugs culture until he had a cancer scare.

Cynical Robert Orchard, 65, had not seen daughter Cheyrl and grandson Robert, nine, for five years when he invited her on an all-expenses-paid sunshine trip to Marbella.
He planned to drive her back to her home in Stirling aboard a new camper-van he had bought for the trip.What she didn’t know was that Orchard had stashed cannabis resin valued at more than £800,000 underneath the bunk-bed in which her
son was sleeping.The van was stopped at Dover Docks in April last year and customs officers found the drugs by drilling through to them.As a result, Cheyrl stood trial at Canterbury Crown Court in December but was acquitted because she did not know anything about the drugs haul.Today (Monday, Feb 23) at the same court Orchard admitted his guilt. Chris Geeson, his counsel, said Orchard had lived on the ‘Costa Del Crime’ for 13 years but had not been tempted to join the drugs culture until he had a cancer scare.He said: “He was losing weight alarmingly and decided to come back to England for treatment.”Previously he had been an entertainments manager and had run holiday estates.Mr Geeson said: “He was told payment for the camper-van would be waived if he took a ‘package’ to England.“After he was caught he realised he’d been involved in significant drug-smuggling.”Passing sentence, Judge Michael O’Sullivan said: “An aggravating feature is that you placed your daughter in danger of arrest. "She was accused of being involved, which placed your grandson with the real prospect he wouldn’t have the care of his mother for some considerable time.
“But for you she wouldn’t have been put through the ordeal of being on trial. "There is no doubt you played a significant part in this importation – but for your previous good character you would be facing a longer sentence.”

Monzer al-Kassar, 63, described by prosecutors as one of the world's most prolific arms dealers, was convicted in November

Monzer al-Kassar, 63, described by prosecutors as one of the world's most prolific arms dealers, was convicted in November of agreeing to sell weapons to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, to protect a cocaine-trafficking business and attack U.S. interests.U.S. prosecutors asked a judge on Monday to sentence a Syrian arms dealer convicted of conspiring to sell weapons worth $1 million to Colombian rebels to decades in prison.Kassar, a longtime resident of Spain known as the "Prince of Marbella" for his lifestyle in the glitzy seaside town, will be sentenced in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday, along with Felipe Moreno Godoy, a Chilean, 59.Kassar was extradited after Spain received assurances from U.S. authorities he would face neither the death penalty nor a life sentence without chance of parole.In a sentencing memo on Monday, prosecutors asked for Kassar to serve a prison sentence "substantially in excess" of the 25-year minimum he faces, but "less than life.""From his palatial estate along Spain's Costa del Sol, Al Kassar commanded an arms trafficking network of criminal associates and front bank accounts that spanned the globe," the memo said.In this case, the memo said, he agreed to supply 12,000 weapons to the FARC, which "he believed intended to use the arms to kill Americans."Kassar's defense lawyers, who argued during the trial he was a legitimate arms dealer, asked in separate court papers for a sentence of 25 years, the minimum he can receive."There were crimes of greed, not crimes of terrorism," said the lawyers. "All this for a crime -- really, a DEA sting operation -- in which nobody was harmed," they said, referring to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.Kassar "will likely die in prison in a foreign country ... thousands of miles from his wife and children," the lawyers said.The prosecution case was based largely on evidence gathered by two undercover operatives who posed as FARC arms buyers and videotaped negotiations in Spain with Kassar and Moreno.Both were convicted on a host of charges including arms sales, conspiracy to kill U.S. officials, conspiracy to aid a terrorist organization and money-laundering.
The U.S. embassy in Madrid said Kassar had been selling weapons since the 1970s to the Palestinian Liberation Front and clients in Nicaragua, Bosnia, Croatia, Iran, Iraq and Somalia.

Removal companies in Malaga on the Costa del Sol are saying that the number of Brits who are returning to the UK is on the increase

Removal companies in Malaga on the Costa del Sol are saying that the number of Brits who are returning to the UK is on the increase and the number who are booking them to move out here is decreasing .A trend of the credit crunch .There are many reasons for doing this and some of them involve walking away from financial committments which they cannot meet .Rents , mortgages , business taxes to name but a few .

Pensioners are more pragmatic as most do not have mortgages and their needs are less so they are prepared to weather the storm .Most have experienced some form of hardship in their lives before , this is nothing new

.
Many who are returning are doing so with heavy hearts as they have loved the life here but when the money isn’t coming in then other avenues have to be explored and at the end of the day there is no place like home .Most of those spoken to about their returns to the UK have had to think about jobs , children , benefits that they would never have in Spain that they will be able to access in the UK, education , health care , the reasons go on and on .

Around 70% of Santander’s retail clients affected by the Madoff scandal have accepted a settlement offered to them by the Spanish bank

Around 70% of Santander’s retail clients affected by the Madoff scandal have accepted a settlement offered to them by the Spanish bank, lawyers told a US court in Miami on Thursday as part of a class action lawsuit. Meanwhile

between 7% to 9% have refused the offer and prefer to continue with their legal proceedings.

Santander’s retail clients were exposed to the Madoff alleged Ponzi scheme via the Optimal Strategy US Equity fund run by Santander’s hedge fund arm Optimal. Santander’s total exposure to Madoff’s funds amounts to €2.3 billion. Despite the negotiated solution to Santander's Madoff exposure, problems have been arising elsewhere for the Spanish bank as

unit-holders of the real estate fund Santander Banif Inmobiliario are also planning to file a lawsuit for the way it has handled requested redemptions

, German newspaper Handelsblatt reports in its printed edition.

Banco Santander has suspended payments in its largest real estate fund

Banco Santander has suspended payments in its largest real estate fund in a decision which has left 43,200 clients with their investment frozen.The fund, Santander Banif Inmoboliario, has assets of 3.2 billion, but those who now ask for their original investment will be paid ten per cent.It comes as the bank finds the fund unable to meet recent requests for withdrawals amounting to 2.617 billion, some 80% of the total.The decision to freeze the fund is a first in Spain, although it is contemplated in law, with the bank asking the regulator CNMV for a two year frozen period. It comes despite the bank’s announcement last month of profits of more than 8 billion €.Those who have investments in the fund can find a serious of recommendations in the National Commission for Market Values website

Self-confessed killer of 17 year old Marta del Castillo from Sevilla, 20 year old Miguel Carcaño, and his friend Samuel Benítez

self-confessed killer of 17 year old Marta del Castillo from Sevilla, 20 year old Miguel Carcaño, and his friend Samuel Benítez who helped to throw the body of Marta into the Guadalquivir River, have been ordered to prison in Sevilla today without bail.
Dozens of people waited outside the courts before and after the appearance of the two youngsters, shouting ‘asesinos’ and other insults, as the emergency services spent their third day searching the river for the body of Marta.It’s now known the two used a wheelchair belonging to the late mother of the main accused, and a moped to take Marta’s body to the river from Miguel’s house in the Macarena area of the city.
The two spent some four hours giving their statements to the judge in Instruction Court 4 in Sevilla which heard how the two got rid of the body in the early hours of Sunday January 25, just a few hours after Miguel had killed Marta by hitting her with an ashtray during an argument.

There has been a fourth arrest in connection with the death of the missing Sevilla 17 year old, Marta del Castillo.The latest arrest came this morning and is understood to be Javier Carcaño, the brother of the man, Miguel Carcaño, who has confessed to the killing the girl after getting into an argument with her three weeks ago.
Javier, along with an unidentified 15 year old boy, faces charges of covering up the crime, while a friend of Miguel, Samuel, could face other charges after helping to dispose of the body.There were shouts from the public of ‘asesinos’ as Miguel and Samuel arrived in court in Sevilla today. The prosecutor has called for prison on remand for the two.For the third day the search is continuing along the length of the Guadalquivir river for Marta’s body. The two used a wheelchair belonging to the mother of the main accused, and a moped to take her body to the river from Miguel’s house in the Macarena area of the city.

Miguel Carcaño, the 20 year old who has confessed to the killing of missing 17 year old Marta del Castillo in Sevilla

Miguel Carcaño, the 20 year old who has confessed to the killing of missing 17 year old Marta del Castillo in Sevilla, has been currently going out with a 14 year old girl, Rocio. Miguel Carcaño will appear in court in Sevilla on Monday charged with the murder of 17 year old Marta del Castillo.She has told the press that although she knows that he is the killer, she cannot believe it. She said she knew that he was quite a jealous man, and when she had asked him if he had anything to do with the crime, he had simply hung his head in silence.

Amer Hady Saed British property developer had suffered a severe blow to the head and cuts as if he had been defending himself against a knife attack

The victim, named in reports as Amer Hady Saed, 68, had suffered a severe blow to the head and cuts as if he had been defending himself against a knife attack, the Spanish newspaper El Pais said. Body of a British property developer has been found at a luxury villa in southern Spain.His body was discovered by workmen renovating a £4.3 million mansion in Marbella, on the Costa del Sol, on Tuesday morning. It is understood Iraqi-born Saed held a British passport and had moved to Spain from London five years ago. He was married to a Moroccan woman, the newspaper said.details on the death of the Iraqi man whose body was found beaten to death in Marbella on Tuesday. The victim was 68 year old, Amer Hady Saed, whose body was found by some building workers in a luxury villa which is still under construction in Calle Margarita, La Carolina. A jacket had been thrown over his head and his hands were bloody, and cut as if he had been defending himself.The man, who had a British passport, had been in Marbella for some five years, but his domestic employees did not know his business activities, describing him as a quiet man. He was married to a Moroccan woman, and spent time both in Morocco and London. The Daily Telegraph reports he was a Property Developer.There are no reports of any police record, but police have established that he was in debt. The villa where his body was found is on the market for 4.8 million €.His death is the fourth violent killing on the Costa del Sol this year, after the kidnapping and death of a San Pedro builder, the shooting of an Irish drug trafficker in Benalmádena, and the discovery of a 28 year old woman found stabbed in her home in Málaga.

Hundreds of Marbella residents affected tens of millions of euros disappeared. A court in San Roque (Cádiz) investigating an alleged scam Lansbanski

Hundreds Marbellas British residents wiped out tens of millions of euros disappeared. A court in San Roque (Cádiz) is investigating an alleged scam perpetrated against foreign residents in Marbella, in an amount that could exceed 40 million euros.
In the spotlight is the Icelandic capital Lansbanski bank recently nationalized due to the international financial crisis, and its subsidiary Luxembourg Luxembourg SA Lansbanski, now in liquidation after entering into receivership. Both the mother and its subsidiary entity and the insurer Lex Life and Pension Luxembourg SA, also belonging to the same group, is shown as reported for alleged misleading advertising and fraud in a complaint filed by the office Martínez-Echevarría, Pérez y Ferrero representing 28 concerned, all foreign residents in Spain. The total number of victims, according to sources in the firm exceeds a hundred. Among those reported are also three agencies with investment activity in the Costa del Sol and dedicated to the British market, the majority nationality of the alleged victims, all pensioners and properties of high value.
According to the complaint, from 2004 players began to market investment in the UK market on the Costa del Sol a financial product from an insurance company owned by the Icelandic bank's subsidiary in Luxembourg which provided a policy of capital secured with the mortgage of their property.Laoperación consisted of mortgage housing, amounts to around half a million euros each, and the investment of that money in a financial product that allowed for a return that not only covered the interest on the capital borrowed, but also supposedly generated additional income. Guests were taken on the grounds that it was a product that is self. Zero risk and return safely. Nothing could be further from what would happen next.
In product advertising, disseminated in different ways in English on the Costa del Sol, also ensures that the system would result in a reduction of the tax base by reducing inheritance tax, when the death of the owner, the amount of the loan value of the property tax with a clear benefit in favor of heirs of the dwellings. This, according to Spanish law, it is not possible, explain the law firm has filed the lawsuit, which has led to including in it a possible crime of misleading advertising.
Given the success of the product, in 2006 the bank opened an information office in New Andalusia, which grew from the acquisition of customers. The concerted lending institution and the amounts financed channeled through his office in Luxembourg to Lex Life insurance which means insurance capital would allegedly promised returns.
However, the financial capital was not insured as promised, let alone self, which led to customers being unable to meet interest on the loan and the amount that entered the insurance capital lost value. After the entry into receivership and the parent bank's liquidation of the luxembuguesa subsidiary, the alleged victims are not contracted quantities of capital in the insurance and the threat of power lose their homes.
Dramatic spiral Customers, as assured in the lawsuit have entered into the next spiral: they are in breach of the obligation to pay interest on the loan and because they earn interest on late payment will not be able to share the following interests by rioja that default interest will increase, with Lex Life insurance is not going to generate the necessary profit to cover the interest due or to meet to be due in the future because if this was not possible when the amount had not been entered yet depreciated , much less what is now the majority has no additional safeguards that provide; despatrimonializado have and their creditworthiness, which could achieve its greatest asset, its building, is completely exhausted, and if all this were not enough 'weight all about the imminent threat of enforcement of security, and especially the mortgage, which would inevitably lead to its downfall, with the loss of their home. The situation worsened after the last October, the Icelandic State was forced to nationalize the bank as part of measures to prevent the collapse of the financial system. This means that creditors of the bank, others in good faith throughout this process, they will hold mortgage collateral and may proceed with its liquidation.
The bank has closed its office in Marbella and has cut all communication with customers.

Spanish law firm three million people were affected by the Madoff affair

There are up to three million "direct and indirect" victims worldwide of the alleged fraud by US broker Bernard Madoff, a Spanish law firm that has filed a US lawsuit in the name of some of the victims said Tuesday.
"Our calculations are that at least three million people were affected by the Madoff affair, three million people who could be directly or indirectly affected by the case," Javier Cremades, the president of law firm Cremades Calvo-Sotelo, told a news conference.The estimate is based on information collected from over 30 law firms around the world that are representing the victims of the alleged pyramid scheme in 25 countries, he said.Cremades said the total amount involved could turn out to be higher than the 50 billion dollars (39 billion euros) that has been widely estimated so far.Last week the law firm, which has offices in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Portugal in addition to Spain, filed a class action lawsuit in Florida in the name of people who invested in Madoff through a fund run by Santander, Spain's largest bank.Shortly after the lawsuit was filed, Santander offered to reimburse the 1.38 billion euros which its private banking clients lost by investing in its Optimal fund -- the first offer of its kind by a bank involved in the case.Santander, the largest bank in the eurozone by market capitalization, said in December that it had a total of 2.33 billion in client funds exposed to Madoff. It has so far not offered to reimburse its institutional investors.The law firm said Madoff had victimized people in many countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Switzerland, South Africa, Mexico and Israel.Madoff, a 70-year-old former chairman of the Nasdaq stock market, was arrested in December and charged with using billions of dollars from new investors to pay off older ones in a Ponzi or pyramid scheme.

Ley de Costas, Coastal Law.property can now be bought and sold, and indeed passed in inheritance, provided the building was built legally before 1988.

Spanish Government has added a last minute amendment to the Ley de Costas, Coastal Law. The change comes as an attempt to lessen the barrage of criticism the law has received from Europe, following complaints from the British and German embassies.

The law is in fact not a new one, but is now 20 years old, but only recently has the current Minister for the Environment, Carmen Narbona, started to enforce it.

The 1988 law declares that the beach is public land, up to the point where the sea reaches in the worst of storms. Any homes built in that area before 1988 were taken into ownership by the state ahead of demolition, but the owners were granted up to 60 years grace, but they were told that they could not sell or reform their properties. The decision on whether a particular property lies in the public area was allowed to take five years. The reform has now come via an amendment to the Maritime Navigation law, taking the legislation change directly via the Justice department and away from the Environment Ministry, needing only additional approval in Congress.
It states that such property can now be bought and sold, and indeed passed in inheritance, provided the building was built legally before 1988. An estimated 45,000 homes are estimated to be affected all along the coasts of Spain.

Recent report from Economic Analysts in Andalucía paints a pretty bleak picture for Andalucía

Recent report from Economic Analysts in Andalucía paints a bleak picture for Andalucía but the province of Malaga the home of Costa del Sol has a much more rosy future than the rest of Andalucía. Malaga with a growth rate of 1.5% last year is the leading province for economic growth whose average growth rate is 1.1%. The gross regional product of Andalucía is expected to fall by 1.1% in 2009 however the least effect of the decline will be felt in Malaga and Sevilla.

One very interesting statistic was that the number of building licenses issued in the province of Malaga was more than 13000 less up to September of last year than the year before. The report not surprisingly states that the crisis in the building industry has been mainly due to the overpricing of housing in the region and the only way out of trouble is for prices to be adjusted downwards. The report suggest prices need to fall 17% nationally and 27% in Andalucía but according to Spanish property experts Spanish Hot Properties some Costa del Sol Property has already been reduced by up to 30% from last years price by developers keen to liquidate there stock and in some cases as much as 45%. According to the report such a price drop would stimulate the property market especially when you consider that the average Malaga family spend 56% of there salary on mortgage this is set against an Andalucian average of 45% and a national average of 40%. However house price falls alone won’t restore the confidence of the local property buyers market with the Andalucian unemployment rate likely to reach 23% in 2009 set against a national average of 17% but price readjustment would be a very good starting point.

So how does the latest report and statistics impact on Spanish property sales in Costa del Sol and when is the right time to buy . Some time in 2009 is the right time to buy according to Susana Suspenda the Marketing and Operations manager for Spanish Hot Properties. “Costa del Sol tourism is holding up very well with Andalucian tourism down 2.3 % but Malaga actually having a 2.4% increase which indicates this is still the place where overseas property buyers want to buy and from our recent survey we can see people are very keen to snap up the bargains that are available and they obviously want to buy as close to the bottom of the market as possible. What the report clearly states is that 27% falls is what is needed for the market to readjust so if you can buy at 40% below value then your 13% ahead of the game so to speak.