Tourist kidnapped in Mallorca « Euro Weekly News
A tourist visiting a friend in Mallorca was kidnapped, beaten and thrown from a moving van after attackers allegedly mistook him for the man they were actually looking for.
The shocking incident happened in Palma on Tuesday, September 22, with police later discovering that the visitor had apparently been caught up in a dispute involving his friend.
Two of the three men arrested in connection with the attack have now been remanded in prison, while a third suspect has been released.
Tourist was alone when attackers arrived
According to Spain’s National Police, the victim had travelled to Mallorca to visit a friend who lives in the municipality of Palma.
On the afternoon of September 22, the visitor was left alone at the property after his friend had to leave.
Three men allegedly entered the property while he was there.
The men are accused of tying up the tourist before beating him and forcing him into a van. They then allegedly drove several kilometres before throwing him out of the moving vehicle.
The injured man was subsequently found tied up on the s’Aranjassa road in Palma.
Police received the alert and two patrols from the National Police’s Citizen Attention Group went to the scene to speak to him.
Attackers had apparently picked the wrong man
The tourist told officers that he had travelled to Mallorca specifically to visit his friend.
He also said that his attackers had threatened to do the same thing to his friend, who normally lived at the property.
That detail became crucial to the investigation.
When the friend later arrived, police were able to obtain a description of the alleged attackers. Officers subsequently identified a man who worked at the property as one of the suspected perpetrators.
Police went to the address, where they reportedly found the van and arrested the man. He was initially investigated over alleged offences including unlawful detention, causing injuries and threats.
Visitor was allegedly used as a warning
Investigators from the National Police’s Robbery Group then began looking into why the tourist had been targeted.
According to the investigation, the owner of the property may have hired two people, alongside the worker who was arrested first. The alleged aim was either to remove the property’s usual occupant or resolve an economic dispute involving him.
However, police believe the three men may have mistakenly thought that the usual occupant was inside when they entered the property. Instead, they found his visiting friend.
Investigators believe the attack on the tourist was then allegedly intended as a warning to the man they had originally wanted to target.
Three men arrested in Mallorca
Police identified the other two alleged attackers following further enquiries and launched a search operation. Both men were subsequently arrested.
By Friday, September 25, all three suspects had been brought before the courts. A Palma court ordered two of the men to be remanded in prison, while the third was released. All three are being investigated for alleged offences including unlawful detention, injuries and threats.
The case remains under investigation, but police believe the tourist was not the person the alleged attackers had originally intended to find. Instead, a visit to a friend in Palma appears to have left him caught in the middle of a dispute that was allegedly aimed at somebody else.
