The Costa del Sol in southern Spain has always been a popular destination for Brits, though not just for its sandy beaches and colourful cocktail bars. Nicknamed the Costa del Crime since the 1970s, the region has become somewhat of a haven for UK criminals, from the Great Train Robber Charlie Wilson – who was shot dead in Marbella in 1990 – to the gangster king Ronnie Knight and Kray twins associate Freddie Foreman.
With a convicted killer, a rapist and several drug traffickers on the latest list of the most wanted British fugitives in Spain – released by the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Crimestoppers on Tuesday – authorities are trying to change this unsavoury part of Spain’s image.
According to Inspector Olga Lizana, head of the Spanish police’s fugitives unit, officers in Spain and the UK are working closely to share intelligence to track down some of Britain’s flashiest criminals on the run in Spain.
“This is not a good place for them to come any more,” Lizana said in a statement at Málaga’s police headquarters. “This is not a safe place for criminals any more. I think we are doing a great job with the British authorities. They have to be aware we are working together.”
The joint initiative by the NCA, Crimestoppers and the Spanish authorities – named Operation Capture – was launched in 2006. It targets suspects thought to be hiding in Spain, with measures including giving out leaflets and beer mats that feature hotline numbers to expat bars.
It has seen 65 of 86 British fugitives caught in Spain – including 38-year-old cocaine smuggler Christopher Mealey, who was arrested in Marbella in 2014 while walking along a popular beachfront tourist location. Mark Lilley – AKA “Fatboy”, “Mandy” and “Big Vern” – a 41-year-old drug dealer from Merseyside, was arrested in 2013 after more than 12 years on the run.
In scenes reminiscent of the film Sexy Beast, footage of Lilley’s arrest shows police scaling the front gates of his villa in Alhaurín de la Torre, near Málaga – complete with barking dogs in the background and a helicopter hovering overhead.
Two months later, Andrew Moran, 31, a cannabis dealer, was captured in a similarly dramatic fashion at the poolside of his villa in Calpe, near Benidorm. Videos of the arrest show a previously sunbathing Moran trying to make an unsuccessful escape by vaulting over a garden wall.
The authorities put Spain’s popularity among British criminals down to its warmer climate as well as its prime location for drug trades with north Africa and South America. Until the late 80s, the country’s lack of an extradition treaty with the UK also made it easy for criminals to cut ties with Britain. But with the introduction of pan-EU extradition, all that has changed. All 10 of Britain’s most wanted fugitives on this latest list are the subject of European arrest warrants.
They include Shane Walford, 38, who is wanted for the manslaughter of an off-duty firefighter while on leave from the army; Mohammed Jahangir Alam, 32, who was sentenced to 14 years for rape and sexual assault; and Jayson McDonald, 37, who is wanted by the Metropolitan police on suspicion of conspiracies to import and supply heroin and cocaine. Last week, an operation to arrest McDonald saw more than a dozen armed officers along with detectives from the Met carry out a dawn raid on a luxury villa in Coín, near Málaga. McDonald was not found.
Hank Cole, head of international operations for the NCA, said that Operation Capture has been successful in sending fugitives a strong message. “Last year, 15 million Brits went to Spain on holiday, there’s around 350,000 Brits who currently live in Spain, and probably about a million who have some property there. There are some sizeable English-speaking communities in Spain, with British restaurants that even serve full English breakfasts, making them good places to hide,” he told the Guardian.
“But our relationship with the Spanish authorities has gone from strength to strength. The Spanish are more interested in the campaign now than they were right at the beginning. These criminals, whilst they’re wanted by the UK legal authorities, continue to pose a threat to Spanish nationals and to the Spanish infrastructure. They don’t want British paedophiles or murderers or drug traffickers in Spain, so they’re more than happy to help us.”
Cole said that Capture and other less high-profile active investigations resulted in the sending 54 Brits back to the UK last year. “There is a big British, honest, legitimate community in Spain that we get information from. Crimestoppers operate confidential helplines and websites people can submit information anonymously to, which is really helpful. Some of the people that give us intelligence may be criminals in their own right.
“Eventually the pressure gets to people. In some cases we haven’t had to actually go and dig people out of their houses and flats; they just give themselves up because they can’t be bothered to run. Stephen Blundell, a drug trafficker, handed himself in two weeks ago in Tenerife.”
