TWO suspects wanted over the murder of John George have been arrested in Portugal, following investigative work done by his family.
The body of Belfast father-of-two John was found on January 7 close to a road in the Rojales area- 10 kms inland from Torrevieja on the Costa Blanca.
He had been stripped naked and stabbed in the legs to disable him before being shot.
JOHN GEORGE
His relatives reported him missing in mid-December after he went on holiday to Cabo Roig, south of Torrevieja.
Lawyers representing the family say that two people from Northern Ireland have been detained, with one of them scheduled for a Wednesday court appearance over being extradited to Spain.
In a statement, the lawyers said: “Over a week ago the family obtained significant information pointing to the possible location of two suspects in the Portuguese town of Braga.”
“That information was passed immediately to the authorities.”
“However, after a frustrating wait to see if there was any headway, the family took matters into their own hands and travelled to Portugal in an attempt to get a meaningful response to the information supplied,” the statement continued.
“As a result of subsequent direct interfacing with the Portuguese authorities, contact was made with their Spanish counterparts who immediately identified a key investigative lead.”
Solicitor Kevin Winters told The Irish Times: “This is the biggest news to date for the George family.”
“I commend their absolute tenacity in pursuing every line of enquiry and then in turn making sure the various European authorities act on what they’ve painstakingly put together.”
“Their input has been crucial to inform decision making on this Extradition warrant,” he added.
