Murder probe launched after British pensioner shot dead in Costa Blanca home

5 May 2022, 13:41

A British woman, 80, has been shot dead in her Costa Blanca home as detectives are treating the incident as a murder, Spanish police have confirmed.

The 80-year-old was found dead in her home on the south-coast of Spain after police were called.

The body was found by police at around 6:30pm on Wednesday in residential estate Urbanizacion Torre Azul between Elche and the nearby town of Torrellano.

Police later confirmed the victim was a British pensioner, and said they were treating the death as a murder.

No arrests have been made, and police are continuing their search for the gunman.

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Reports said she had been shot three times and the gun fired from close range. Neighbours are said to have called the police after a plumber got no answer when he arrived to the home for a scheduled visit.

A spokesman for Spain’s National Police said: “We are investigating the death of a British woman who was shot dead at a property in Elche. We are investigating it as a murder and can confirm she was shot dead.

“The alarm was raised around 6.30pm yesterday/on Wednesday.

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Costa Blanca is a popular tourist destination for British holidaymakers, and has a number of permanent British residents living in the area.

As of last year, 314,000 British people were permanently living in Spain.

Police refused to confirm whether anything had been taken from the scene, but gave a brief description of the victim.

The spokesperson added: “She was 80 years old and lived alone.

“No arrests have yet been made and the investigation is ongoing. We are not in a position to discuss the possible motive at this stage.”