The Civil Guard has arrested a man, resident in the municipality of Gaucín (Málaga, 1,591 inhabitants), for the murder of his ex-wife’s partner. The body of the victim, born in Puente Genil and 42 years old in Cordoba, was found last Tuesday half naked and with signs of violence on the side of an isolated road in the Serranía de Ronda. Since then, police work has made it possible to collect evidence leading to the now arrested man, who ended up acknowledging the facts during interrogation. After he was brought to justice, the authorities ordered him to be placed in provisional prison.
The investigations began immediately after the discovery of the man’s lifeless body, with little clothing and “obvious signs of violence”, as reported by the Guardia Civil in a statement. He was lying on the side of an isolated dirt road in the municipality of Alpandeire, in the Ronda mountains. The officers first spoke to his relatives and informed them that the victim had started a romantic relationship with a woman from Gaucín and that he had moved to the city of Malaga to live with her.
After identifying her, the civil guards investigated her surroundings. They then discovered that her ex-husband owned a car whose characteristics corresponded to the type of vehicle used to dispose of the body. The man was arrested last Thursday. Immediately afterwards both his car and his home were searched. “Incriminating biological remains” were found in both, according to the Armed Institute, as well as the murder weapon.
The three people had lived together for a few days in the house where the alleged perpetrator of the murder and his ex-wife lived, in Gaucín. The victim had gone there after starting the relationship with her. Days later, the alleged murderer offered to accompany his ex-partner’s boyfriend to the city train station. The destination, however, was different. He took him to an isolated area where he inflicted several blows to his head and back with a blunt object until he died. Then he put the body in the trunk – which he had covered with plastic – and parked in front of the house, until finally moving it to a wild area, far from the population centers of the region, in the municipality of Alpandeire. He then threw the plastic and the victim’s clothing into a waste container and hid the weapon in a storage room.
On the same afternoon as the events, a shepherd who was walking along a dirt road found the body and alerted the emergency services. He explained to the Guardia Civil that the body was not there when he made the journey with his flock, but that he found it on the way back. Officers then began investigations which led to the arrest two days later.
After the arrest, the man recognized the facts and participated in their reconstruction. The operation was developed by the Homicide Group of the Judicial Police of the Guardia Civil of Malaga and directed by the head of the Civil and Investigative Section of the Ronda Court number 3.
The 016 telephone line assists victims of sexist violence, their families and those around them 24 hours a day, every day of the year, in 53 different languages. The number is not recorded on the phone bill, but the call must be canceled from the device. You can also contact via email 016-online@igualdad.gob.es and via WhatsApp on 600 000 016. Minors can contact the ANAR Foundation telephone number 900 20 20 10. In case of emergency it is possible to call 112 or the telephone numbers of the State Police (091) and the Civil Guard (062). And if you can’t call you can use the ALERTCOPS application, from which an alert signal is sent to the Police with geolocation.
