Spain arrests alleged arsonist linked to wildfire as second firefighter dies
"Today we mourn the death of another member of the team fighting fires in Leon," Nicanor Sen, the national government's representative in Castile and Leon wrote on X.
Local media identified the man as 37-year-old Jaime Aparicio, who suffered burns to 85% of his body after being trapped alongside another volunteer near the town of Nogarejas as they attempted to create firebreaks with brush cutters. He was the seventh fatality linked to wildfires this year.
His colleague Abel Ramos, 35, died on Tuesday. On Monday, a separate fire killed a man on the outskirts of Madrid.
Police said they arrested a man in northern Zamora province for starting a fire on a plot of land used to dump rubbish illegally.
The hot weather caused it to spread rapidly, burning 4,000 hectares (15.4 square miles) and leaving five people injured, they said.
Another man was arrested for provoking six fires earlier in August in the southern province of Malaga, police said on Thursday.
Ten people have been arrested since June 1, said police, who were investigating a further 38 for deliberately starting forest fires. Convicted arsonists in Spain could face up to five years in prison and hefty fines.
Three firemen were in critical condition for burns they sustained fighting a fire near Ourense in the northwestern region of Galicia.
Spain's wildfires are being fanned by one of the longest heatwaves since records began. They have razed about 148,000 hectares (571 square miles) in Spain this year, the second biggest area since 2006.
That makes up more than a quarter of the 512,000 hectares burned in the EU so far this year, according to the European Commission's European Forest Fire Information System.
In Galicia, about 170 children and those supervising them spent Tuesday confined to their summer camp grounds after a wildfire burned the cables of the camp's power system, the regional government said in a statement.
The campers were rescued and moved to a water park on Wednesday.
"We were really scared, but in the midst of the fire, with a few tears, we and the monitors were also dancing. The sky was orange, but everything worked out in the end," 12-year-old Carlota told news agency Europa Press.
Spain received two Canadair water-bombing planes from France on Thursday after it asked for help from European partners to tackle the fires, Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said in an interview on RTVE.
Nearly two dozen blazes continued to rage, fuelled by wind and extreme heat. Around 9,500 people were evacuated from their towns and hundreds ordered to stay at home.
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The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Child killer Constance Marten ‘barred from calling lover or sending him letters in jail,' prison source claims
EVIL mum Constance Marten has been banned from contacting her rapist lover in jail, a source claimed. Marten, 38, and Mark Gordon, 51, were convicted of gross negligence manslaughter following a retrial last month. 10 10 10 The pair lived off-grid with their baby Victoria, and the tragic tot died while living in a tent in the South Downs with hardly any clothes or "means of keeping or remaining warm". Victoria, who spent 'much of her life' in a Lidl bag for life, was later discovered dead inside an abandoned shed. The couple are now awaiting sentencing, with Marten behind bars at HMP Bronzefield and Gordon locked up at HMP Belmarsh. A prison source has claimed the mum, who had four children previously removed from her care, is now banned from calling Gordon or sending him letters from jail. According to the insider, inter-prison calls are usually easy to facilitate, and happen on a "semi-regular basis". "But with Constance and Mark staff have been told there's not a chance," the source told the Mail. "Prisoners are allowed to write to whoever they want to. But just because they pop it in the post bag it doesn't mean it is going to get there. "Every letter is read by security. Constance is going to be fuming when she finds out Mark isn't getting any of them." This comes after a source also claimed Marten could be in for a "rude awakening" in jail. The former socialite has allegedly been moaning about the food in HMP Bronzefield - nicknamed the women's Monster Mansion. The 38-year-old is the daughter of aristocrat Napier Marten, who was a page to the Queen. But Marten is simply known as Prisoner A9624X at the 527-inmate prison, a mile south of Heathrow airport. Now, Marten has made numerous complaints about life behind bars, according to one prison source. 10 10 10 And she is accused of behaving like she is "above the jail and everyone in it", the source claimed. The source told the Mail: "She complains as much as any other inmate I've seen in my career and she's got it a lot easier than most prisoners. "She seems to think she is above the jail and everyone in it. She acts like it's a mistake she's in there and sooner or later someone will realise and she'll be back out." Ahead of her sentencing next month, a source told the outlet: "Staff are a bit nervous about what she's going to be like afterwards." Timeline of baby 'killing' - how couple evaded cops CONSTANCE Marten and Mark Gordon allegedly sparked a 54-day manhunt across the UK after vanishing with their baby Victoria. Here's how the pair's journey began... December 20, 2022 Marten and Gordon booked into a holiday cottage in Northumberland, with the rental due to end on Boxing Day. The owner told jurors he found the property in "something of a state" on December 28. December 24, 2022 The couple claim their baby daughter was born this day but this has been disputed by prosecutors. December 28, 2022 Their Suzuki broke down on the M18 motorway so a recovery driver took them to a nearby Sainsbury's. There was allegedly no sign of the baby but the back and side windows of the car had been blocked by clothing. January 4, 2023 Marten and Gordon checked into the Ibis hotel at the Lymm Services in Cheshire then later the AC Hotel in Manchester. January 5, 2023 The couple's Peugeot 206 catches fire on the M61 motorway in Greater Manchester. Police launch an urgent probe after finding placenta, burner phones and Marten's passport, jurors were told. She and Gordon are taken to a Morrisons store in Bolton by a member of the public before being seen on CCTV at the nearby Bolton Interchange station. The couple allegedly use Marten's trust for a taxi to Liverpool, then a £400 cab to Harwich in Essex. Cab driver Ali Yaryar, who picked the couple up from Liverpool, told the court: "I think the baby had no clothes". January 6, 2023 The couple arrive in Harwich and check into a Premier Inn at around 3am. They later move to the Fryatt Hotel, where they paid in cash, it was said. January 7, 2023 Marten and Gordon travel by taxi to Colchester then to East Ham in London. The couple allegedly buy a buggy from Argos then grab another cab to Whitechapel. They ate in a Brick Lane restaurant then dump the new buggy - choosing instead to keep Victoria in a Lidl bag, jurors heard. January 8, 2023 The couple spend £475 on a taxi from Hornsey to Newhaven in East Sussex and walk to the South Downs National Park. January 9, 2023 Both Marten and Gordon claim baby Victoria died on this day - making her 16 days old, the court was told. It is said there is no way of knowing this for sure. January 12, 2023 Marten is captured buying snacks and petrol with cash but there was no sign of the baby. Prosecutors say she bought the fuel to cremate the baby but changed her mind. January 16, 2023 Marten and Gordon are seen setting up a tent in Stanmer Park Nature Reserve in the South Downs despite the cold weather. February 16/17, 2023 The couple are spotted near Hollingbury Golf Course in rural Sussex allegedly pushing a buggy with no baby. Their tent is later seen in Coldean Lane in Brighton A driver sees the pair walking towards Stanmer Park with something under Marten's puffer jacket, the court heard. February 19, 2023 Gordon and Marten are allegedly seen in their tent in the park with a very young baby with a "wobbly" head. Jurors told the baby had no socks, blanket or hat on. February 27, 2023 The couple are arrested in Hollingbury Place in Brighton but do not reveal Victoria's location at first, it is said. March 1, 2023 Tragic Victoria is found dead in a Lidl bag covered in rubbish inside a disused shed "like refuse", the court is told. "She is only expecting a couple of years maximum because she still believes what she was doing with her baby made sense. "She thinks she's just passing through here. We reckon she's in for a rude awakening." Marten's new life sees her also "complain constantly" about the food, according to the source. "It's almost as if she's in a restaurant and is surprised about how poor the standards are. It's like she doesn't seem to understand where she is, that this is a prison," they said. Among the inmates serving life at the Surrey women's prison are baby-killer nurse Lucy Letby and Beinash Batool, who murdered her ten-year-old step- daughter Sara Sharif. A source previously told The Sun how Letby and Batool had become friends "partly for their own protection" as child killers are a target for other female prisoners. And Marten, who can only mix with a handful of inmates including the dangerous pair, should consider making pals with them, it was claimed. Marten has been put under 24-hour observation over fears for her safety, with guards checking her at least every five minutes. But our source claimed Marten's behaviour continues to be "odd" and it appeared that she was "deluded about what's happened". Marten and Gordon were arrested in Brighton on February 27, 2023 following a nationwide manhunt after they fled with their newborn. It was revealed the couple had four children between 2017 and 2021, but all were placed into care after strong concerns were raised. Marten gave birth to Victoria without seeking any medical assistance in early 2022 and kept her "their little secret". The infant had hardly any clothes or means of keeping or remaining warm. Victoria, who spent 'much of her life' in a Lidl bag for life, was tragically discovered dumped among rubbish in a shed near Brighton. At their first trial, which began in January 2024, they were convicted of perverting justice, concealment of a baby's birth and child cruelty. And when their 'chaotic' second trial ended last month, a jury found the couple guilty of manslaughter. The two lengthy hearings had cost taxpayers more than £10million. ODD BEHAVIOUR IN COURT By Summer Raemason THE jury deliberated for 14 hours and 32 minute before reaching its verdicts. Gordon looked to Marten before leaning his head back and closing his eyes. Judge Mark Lucraft, KC, the Recorder of London, will sentence the couple on 15 September. During their trial, the couple regularly argued between themselves and interrupted the judge. They also refused to attend several hearing pretending to be ill, which nurses later disproved. Marten herself was represented by 15 separate barristers, including seven KC's. The couple were regularly reprimanded for talking to each other during the trials. One jury member told the judge they were being distracted by the defendants. Gordon often attended with a large sack full of papers, while Marten had a stack of files. The couple smiled, chatted and blew kisses at each other in the dock during their first trial. They continued to chat and smile at each other when appearing at the Old Bailey throughout their subsequent hearings. When Gordon was giving his evidence, Marten mouthed words of encouragement to him from the dock. She also described the prosecution as "heartless" and "diabolical". Moments after being convicted, Gordon yelled from the dock: "I'm not surprised by the verdict. It was faulty, it was unlawful. This is not over, it has just begun." He also said it was "a scam". 10 10 10 10
Sky News
3 hours ago
- Sky News
Body pulled from river in search for missing boy, 12
A body has been pulled from a river in the search for a missing 12-year-old boy. The body was found in the River Swale in Richmond late Saturday, North Yorkshire Police said. Police launched a search for the boy after receiving reports at 5pm on Saturday that a boy had entered the river and not been seen since. Specialist search teams as well as fire and rescue officers were deployed to help with the search, with crews "recovering a child's body from the water" at 10.45pm. "The body is yet to be identified, but the boy's family have been informed and are receiving support from specially-trained officers," police said in a statement. The death is not being treated as suspicious.
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Oatlands crash driver makes candid admission from behind bars after his car mounted the kerb and killed four children
A Sydney man who killed four children while driving drunk has claimed the one thing he most looks forward to doing when freed from jail is opening a door by himself. In February 2020, Samuel William Davidson mowed down seven children after his out-of-control ute mounted a footpath in Oatlands, in Sydney's west. Four of the children - siblings Siennah, 8, Angelina, 12 and Antony Abdallah, 12 and their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11 - were killed instantly while another, Charbel Kassas, 11, was badly injured and spent two months in a coma. They were on their way to buy ice-cream when Davidson mowed them down en route to a nearby service station. Davidson had a blood alcohol content three times the legal limit and had cocaine and MDMA in his system at the time of the crash. He pleaded guilty to four counts of manslaughter among other charges and is serving 20 years behind bars having had his sentence reduced from 28 years on appeal. For the first time since the incident, Davidson, now 34, has spoken on camera about the events leading up to the incident in an interview with Seven News' Spotlight. The events of the day were 'blurry', he said, but he recalled waiting 'forever' for a light to turn green before running the red and losing control of the vehicle. 'I had no control because of the intoxication… I've taken the corner so fast, not even a race car driver could have pulled that off in a professional car,' he added, according to the Sunday Telegraph. 'When I got out it was horrible, there were dead bodies… It was horrible.' In the interview, which will air on Sunday, Davidson meets with Danny Abdallah, the father of three of the children he killed, inside Cessnock jail maximum security. While the pair speak regularly and Mr Abdallah and his wife Leila have been open about their decision to forgive Davidson, this is the first time the public will see the two men interact. Mr Abdallah said he wanted to tell Davidson about his children and deliver 'an important message'. Davidson also opened up about his hard-drinking lifestyle before the incident, pledging those days were behind him. 'It's a shame that I had to enjoy life under the influence of alcohol or anything like that to enjoy it, because I can tell you my thoughts about that are completely different now,' he told the program. Davidson, who spends up to 17 hours a day inside his cell, said it was important to him to keep a clean cell, the way he would at home. 'I do try and keep it that way because I just think it looks better and yeah, it just makes it more homely. Yeah, I was like that on the outside too,' he told the program. With a decade still to serve, Davidson said he longed to be able to open and close a door for himself when he is finally freed from custody. 'I've had a dream where I was waiting for a door to open at home. At home you just open a door, you know what I mean?' he told the program. 'Here you've got to wait for a door … freely opening it – I can't wait,' he said. Mr Abdallah has attributed his decision to forgive Davidson to his Christian faith but added it was necessary for the sake of his marriage and surviving children. 'At the end of the day, I've still got three other kids. I need to be a father too and I need to be a husband to my wife, and it's already hard enough,' he told KIIS FM's The Kyle & Jackie O on Friday. As for his own family, Davidson said his parents visit him most weekends, but he struggles with the possibility they may no longer be around when he is released. 'I love every second I get with them,' he said.
