Man remains in custody after Irish woman killed in Spanish hotel

On Tuesday police confirmed he would spend a second night in a police cell before being taken to court on Wednesday. Picture: AP

An Irish tourist arrested on suspicion of murdering his partner at their Spanish hotel will remain in police custody until Wednesday.

Detectives have 72 hours to hold him from the time of his arrest under Spanish law.

On Tuesday police confirmed he would spend a second night in a police cell before being taken to court on Wednesday.

The 30-year-old was arrested on Sunday night after his partner was found dead on a second-floor corridor of the four-star Magnolia Hotel in the Costa Dorada resort of Salou, 70 miles south of Barcelona.

He spent that night at a hospital in Tarragona receiving treatment for a wrist wound police have described as “self-inflicted”. A spokesman for the regional Mossos d’Esquadra police force said on Tuesday: “The man in custody will be held for the maximum period allowed under Spanish law.

“That will mean him appearing before a judge tomorrow [Wednesday].”

A source close to the investigation added: “The seriousness of the charges the suspect is facing is the main contributing factor to the decision on how long he should be held because of all the necessary inquiries pertinent to the investigation that need to be made.

“The judge will determine what steps are taken once he is handed over to the courts.” 

The victim, described as a mother of two, is said to have been strangled with a ligature.

Police and other emergency responders found her dead in a second-floor corridor outside her hotel room after a 999 call from the hotel around 9.30pm on Sunday.

Minute's silence

A minute’s silence was held for the unnamed victim on Monday evening at Salou Town Hall. Mayor Pere Granados and the regional government’s minister for equality Tania Verge were among those who took part.

Confirming the Salou killing was being treated as a gender-related crime, the department Ms Verge heads said: “A new feminicide is confirmed in Salou.

“It is the seventh registered in Catalonia in 2023.

“We will not stop until we can all live free from male violence. If you need it ask for help.” 

On Monday, police said: “Officers from the Mossos d'Esquadra’s Criminal Investigation Decision in Tarragona have arrested a man allegedly related to the violent death of a woman in Salou on Sunday night.

“The events occurred around half past nine when the Mossos received a warning from a hotel in Salou saying a woman was seriously injured.

When they arrived at the scene, the officers found a woman lying on the floor and a man next to her with a self-inflicted wound.

“Although emergency medical responders tried to revive the woman, they were finally only able to certify her death.

“Officers arrested the man as the alleged perpetrator of the death.” 

They went on to confirm the arrested man was 30, with sources close to the investigation later confirming both the woman and the detainee were Irish.