Man shot dead close to hotel in Spanish holiday resort popular with British tourists
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New Statesman
12 hours ago
- New Statesman
How anti-migrant politics came for Deliveroo
Photo by Justin Tallis/AFP There was a time when Deliveroo riders were invisible. Smudges of turquoise in the cityscape; helmeted droids handing you your dinner; a dot on a map. So invisible that two years ago I reported on the case of one who collapsed outside a block of flats, only for the customers to step over him to retrieve their Thai meal – even trying to ask the unconscious man where a missing part of their order was. Now they are a target. A month ago, the Home Office shared the location of hotels housing asylum seekers with Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats, to encourage the companies to identify people working illegally for their apps. This was accompanied by a sinister poster depicting a courier as a black silhouette casting a shadow, captioned: 'Delivered by who?' The shadow home secretary Chris Philp filmed himself at an asylum hotel car park, pointing out the Deliveroo and Uber Eats bikes parked there. The real-world consequences of this were predictable: the public targeting couriers, rather than big corporates bothering to weed out illegal workers signing up to their apps or sharing accounts. And so it transpired outside the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf, east London, which has been a site of protest since the news of asylum seekers moving in last month. Protesters filmed and tried to block two drivers on motorbikes with containers attached to the back leaving the hotel: 'Tell me these ain't delivery drivers, guys,' says one voice in the footage. They weren't: they were members of staff working at the hotel, according to the Metropolitan Police. The following afternoon, an Uber Eats cyclist was surrounded by protesters, including men in balaclavas, outside the hotel. In the footage there are audible shouts of 'illegal'. It turned out he was delivering food to the hotel, not staying there. The police had to escort him to safety. The political and protest focus on illegal working is, in a way, curious. It runs counter to a lot of the complaints and arguments I've heard from people opposing the asylum hotels lately, which mainly centre around asylum seekers getting something 'for nothing'. While reporting in Diss, a Norfolk town where a recent asylum hotel protest turned aggressive and resulted in public order charges, I had a conversation that felt key to the resentment building up in such places. A factory worker in his thirties explained how hard life was for locals – earning low wages, unable to afford housing, their town centre losing its soul – in comparison to the experience he saw as one of free food and comfortable accommodation afforded to the asylum hotel residents. He pointed to a mustard-fronted Turkish takeaway called Istanbul and told me: 'I respect them, they came here, they've been here years, built a business and give something back, contributing, paying tax.' Asylum seekers are not allowed to work. This ban was introduced by Tony Blair's government in 2002 to try and deter new arrivals. Yet a side effect of this is the frustration that builds up in communities where asylum seekers are housed – they are seen as a drain on the state with free shelter and support when they pay nothing back. In reality, they have very little choice. Asylum seekers are demonised as scroungers receiving preferential treatment while giving nothing in return, and at the same time demonised for trying to work. I think every asylum seeker I've interviewed over the years has expressed their desire to work. The result is they move into the black economy, which is also seen as a 'pull factor' for asylum seekers making the journey to Britain. From reporting on these tensions, I would argue the antagonising factor is anyone acting outside of official channels, and the lack of control this suggests – as with the small boats. Yet politicians insist opening up legal options for work while asylum seekers await a decision on their claims would incentivise more to make the journey. Their alternative, casting couriers as shadowy unknown figures, risks exposing the most precarious workers even more. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe [See also: How Britain lost the status game] Related
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Daily Mirror
Costa Blanca gang war fears as crime boss shot dead in tourist hotspot in broad daylight
Gangster Caner Kocer is said to have made threats online before he was shot by two gunmen in the popular Spanish resort of Torrevieja in front of a terrified mum with her baby British tourists are on alert after a Turkish crime boss was murdered in a popular Spanish resort amid fears the shooting could spark a gang war. The victim, named as Caner Kocer, 30, was gunned down on Sunday evening in the centre of Torrevieja, south of Alicante on the Costa Blanca. Two hitmen fired six shots from close range before fleeing in a getaway car waiting nearby which was driven by a third suspect. Witnesses to the 7pm attack, in the old town area near the seafront which is popular with tourists, included a mother with a baby in a pushchair. Turkish media reported Kocer is one of the leaders of an organised crime gang known as the "Daltons" who have been in dispute with rivals the Caspers group. It comes after a man brutally killed a woman on a first date and left her body parts around town. Three Turkish men have reportedly been arrested. The Daltons gang are said to be part of a new generation of Turkish criminal who target young people through social media platforms like TikTok, ensnaring them into carrying out extortion and robbery. Turkish media has reported that Kocer's gang are now preparing to retaliate raising fears of further bloodshed in Spain. A member of the Daltons gang was extradited from Georgia to Turkey last month suspected of a string of shootings in Istanbul. And the gang are also suspected of carrying out a string of shootings in Greece in recent years including in May when gunmen opened fire at undercover police officers. Bullets were fired at the cops as they followed Daltons members who were suspected of being in the process of planning another hit. Kocer had been making threats on social media before his killing and was pictured pointing a gun at the camera alongside words in Turkish which translate as: "Spain's greatest duck hunter cannot miss the target. He knows the ducks very well. You will swear allegiance." He was shot as he walked by a town centre restaurant. Pictures from the scene showed police and paramedics treating him as lay by the restaurant terrace. Nearby streets were cordoned off until late Sunday as forensic officers carried out a finger-tip search of the scene. Six bullet casings from an automatic firearm are said to have been removed. Three suspects are understood to have been held around 40 minutes after the murder. Turkish media reports said the Daltons Gang are a violent criminal organisation which started out in Istanbul and have been in the news in recent years for assassinations abroad. The Costa Blanca has seen a number of violent incidents involving British and Irish nationals in recent months. The body of Belfast man John George was found hidden in an orchard in Rojales near Torrevieja on January 7. He had been shot. Alleged killer Jonny Smyth, also from Northern Ireland, was extradited to Spain in April after being arrested in Braga in northern Portugal on March 25 and remains on remand in prison. On May 13 an Irishman was left critically injured after being shot in the head near a shopping centre in Orihuela Costa just north of Torrevieja. Belfast man Dan McMeekin was stabbed nearby in June. He was knifed in the neck and rushed to Torrevieja Hospital for a life-saving emergency operation.
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Daily Mirror
Costa Blanca shooting horror as man gunned down in Brit tourist hotspot
Two gunmen launched six shots at the victim, thought to be in his 30s, before fleeing the scene on foot and jumping into a getaway car in Torrevieja, near Alicante on Spain's Costa Blanca A man has been shot dead in front of horrified Costa Blanca tourists in a popular British holiday resort. The victim, believed to be aged around 30, was gunned down yesterday evening in the centre of Torrevieja, an hour's drive south of Alicante. Two shooters fired at him six times from close range before fleeing on foot and jumping into a getaway car waiting nearby, which was driven by a third man. Witnesses to the 7pm attack included a mother with a baby in a pushchair. It comes after news a nursery teacher drowned her partner's four-year-old daughter in sickening attack. The victim was shot as he walked by a town centre restaurant which closes on Sundays. Pictures from the scene showed police and paramedics trying to resuscitate him as he lay on the ground by the restaurant terrace. He was pronounced dead at the scene and his body was removed around 8.15pm yesterday. The streets where the shooting occurred, close to a well-known hotel, were cordoned off until late yesterday so officers could collect evidence. Six bullet casings are said to have been located and removed. Three suspects are understood to have been arrested around 40 minutes after the shooting. Unconfirmed Turkish language reports are naming the victim as a senior member of the Daltons Gang, a violent criminal organisation which started out in Istanbul and has been in the news in recent years for the assassinations it has carried out abroad. Local Spanish press also suggest the victim and gunmen were of probable Turkish origin, although one report said the getaway car had French number plates. A spokesman for the Civil Guard in Alicante said today: 'We can confirm that at 7pm yesterday, Sunday 3 August, a shooting took place in the town of Torrevieja. 'A few minutes later, several Civil Guard and Local Police patrols arrived at the scene, located on Calle Pedro Lorca and Rambla de Juan Mateo García in Torrevieja. 'Despite attempts to stabilise a man found lying on the ground by the officers, he died at 7:40 pm that same day. 'The perpetrators fled the scene, but three men were located and arrested at 7.20 pm while the victim was still alive. 'The weapon presumed to have been used in the shooting has been seized. The identities of those involved have yet to be confirmed. 'The investigation is being carried out by the Judicial Police Team of the Civil Guard of Torrevieja, with the support of the Criminalistics Laboratory of the Alicante Command. The units are currently gathering evidence to clarify the facts and possible causes. 'The rest of the details are currently part of the investigation, so it is impossible for us to provide you with further information.'
