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CRIME

Meat grinder clue in serial killer probe

Police believe they may be dealing with a serial killer who carried out satanic rituals and disposed of women using a meat grinder.

Published: 21 April 2015 11:35 CEST
Meat grinder clue in serial killer probe
A photo of a Guardia Civil van Photo: Cesar Manso / AFP

Police have detained a 32-year-old man over the disappearance and possible murder of five women in Majadahonda, a commuter town 16kn northwest if Madrid.

Bruno Fernández who is in police custody has been dubbed the "Majadahonda Ripper" after grisly details have emerged following a search of his home, a chalet in the middle-class neighbourhood.

A Civil Guard team alongside Judicial police and forensics spent all of Monday searching the property in the presence of Fernández who has been remanded into custody.

Police say they discovered a meat grinder on the property, possibly with human remains inside, including what appeared to resemble a human tooth.

The alarm was first raised by the brother of 55-year-old woman from Argentina who had rented a room in the house of Fernández. The brother of Adriana Giogiosa, told police he had been unable to contact his sister who he usually spoke with every day, since the beginning of the month.

Police became suspicious when they questioned Fernández, an unemployed man who has reportedly suffered psychiatric problems and has been sectioned twice before, according to a report in El Mundo.

Police discovered what resembled blood stains in one of the rooms and also a blood-stained knife. They also found that half of the flat had been newly repainted.

Neighbours reported seeing Fernandez behaving strangely when he disposed of plastic bags recently, placing them in different containers. Police are now investigating whether they could have contained the chopped up remains of his victim.

But Civil Guard investigators are also looking into whether Fernandez could be responsible for the disappearance of at least four others.

The house belongs to an aunt of Fernandez who herself has not been seen for years. Fernández claimed that he had “inherited” the property after she was moved to a residential care home. But authorities have no record of her being taken into care.

Police are also investigating whether Fernández could be linked to the disappearance of a prostitute who vanished in the area some time ago, according to El Pais and two others.

Neighbours from a former residence of Fernández have described how he regularly sacrificed live animals in apparent satanic rituals, forcing regular complaints to police, according to a report in Tuesday’s El Mundo.

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CRIME

Dutch gang leader vanishes in Spain after accidental release

A top drug trafficker is on the run after accidentally being bailed from jail in Spain, officials said Tuesday, dodging a bid to extradite him to the Netherlands where his Mocro Maffia gang is based.

Published: 24 April 2024 09:23 CEST
Dutch gang leader vanishes in Spain after accidental release

Karim Bouyakhrichan was arrested in January in Marbella, an upmarket tourist resort on Spain’s southern coast, along with five other members of the Mocro Maffia gang.

They are suspected of having bought 172 properties in Spain worth over €50 million ($53.5 million) to launder their gains from drug trafficking.

But the following month a court in the southern city of Málaga decided to grant him provisional release with judicial supervision, against the wishes of public prosecutors and the Spanish government. Judicial sources said Tuesday his whereabouts are now unknown.

“It is worrying news,” Justice Félix Bolaños told a news conference following a weekly cabinet meeting when asked about the case.

“I can’t comment on any court decisions, but I do trust that the state security forces will bring this person to justice as soon as possible,” he added.

The Málaga court said in its ruling granting Bouyakhrichan provisional release that the risk that he would flee could be avoided “with other less burdensome security measures” than pre-trial detention.

It imposed bail of €50,000, took away his passport and ordered him to report to the authorities twice a month.

Dutch extradition bid

At the same time Spain’s top criminal court was processing a request for Bouyakhrichan’s extradition to the Netherlands, where he is wanted for large-scale drug trafficking.

But it postponed its extradition proceedings because the Málaga court intended to put Bouyakhrichan on trial first for money laundering, court sources told AFP.

When the Netherlands provided more information to back its extradition request, the top court summoned him to testify and when he failed to appear a fresh warrant for his arrest was issued.

Vincent Veenman, a spokesman at the Dutch public prosecutor’s office in The Hague, said it was “unknown” to them why Bouyakhrichan had not been detained for extradition.

“We are currently awaiting a decision on the extradition request,” he added.

“Our experience with the Spanish justice system is that this cooperation is generally good. Dozens of suspects are handed over every year.”

Bouyakhrichan’s brother Samir, another leading member of the Mocro Maffia, was murdered in 2014 near Marbella, sparking a reorganisation of organised crime groups in the region.

The Mocro Maffia made international headlines in 2022 after it emerged that Dutch Crown Princess Amalia had been placed under heavy protection in response to fears of an attack by the group.

Dutch media reported earlier last week that the 20-year-old heir to the Dutch throne studied in Madrid after being forced to ditch plans to live in student accommodation in Amsterdam because of the threats.

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