A British man has been charged with stabbing to death a Spanish pedestrian during a traffic accident on the Costa del Sol.
Prosecutors want Lewis Harry Briggs to face more than 16 years in prison if convicted, it emerged today.
The 23-year-old was extradited to Spain from the UK to face trial after being arrested on the outskirts of Leeds in December 2020 following a five-week manhunt.
He is accused of stabbing teen Ulrich Perez in the heart on November 18, 2020, at a pedestrian crossing in an area known as Diana Park between the resort towns of Marbella and Estepona, which Briggs allegedly criticized for speeding.
Lewis Harry Briggs, a promising boxer, is accused of stabbing a Spanish teenager to death
Ulrich Perez was stabbed in the heart on November 18, 2020 at a zebra crossing between the resorts of Marbella and Estepona
The white Mercedes car the murder suspect was driving was impounded shortly after the fatal stabbing as it was about to be removed, try a pickup
At the time, the victim was allegedly attacked by a man in a British white Mercedes whom he had penalized for speeding.
The car the murder suspect was driving was impounded shortly after the fatal stabbing as it was about to be removed in a pickup truck.
A three-page indictment made public today accuses Briggs of stealing the license plates from an Audi S8 parked in a garage hours after the murder and putting them on his hired Merc.
On the crime leading to Ulrich’s death, it says: ‘After a struggle with the victim, with intent to end his life, we allege that the suspect kicked and stabbed him in the chest before fleeing.
“As a result of the brutal aggression, the victim died of an injury caused by a single stab wound to the chest that entered his heart and, according to the autopsy, caused massive external bleeding.”
Prosecutors are seeking a 14-year prison sentence for Briggs, who lived in the Marbella area, if convicted of Ulrich’s murder at trial.
They want him to receive an additional two years in prison if convicted of fraud involving the use of the stolen license plates, and another two months for theft.
And if he is found guilty of the most serious crime facing him, they want him to pay Ulrich’s parents £265,000 each in damages.
Briggs is said to have stabbed the Spanish victim at a zebra crossing between Marbella and Estepona
He will now appear before a judge in Estepona via video link at a court in Madrid after being handed over to Spanish police
Briggs, 21 at the time of the incident, was identified as a boxer from a wealthy Marbella family around the time of his arrest in Spain.
He is said to have often boxed at the MGM gym, which has now closed after being renamed the MTK Marbella gym, but welcomed stars such as Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua and was closely associated with Irish crime boss Daniel Kinahan.
Ulrich, a victim of a movie theater worker, was on his way back from a local supermarket to the house he shared with his parents and two siblings opposite the crime scene when he was attacked.
According to local reports, one of the people who came to his aid was his mother.
The youngster’s great-aunt, Herminia Martinez, took to Facebook afterwards to say, “Sometimes we feel like God has abandoned us and we ask why the Lord took you or why you have that person who is your son or daughter. daughter hurt before you want to have. to ask them why they did what they did and committed such atrocities.
‘I can imagine that we also want to die with our son or daughter, because the pain must be so great that we don’t think about anything else. You can’t believe what’s happening. We think it’s a nightmare.
“A crazy man, a stupid man snatched your life from you and you are in another dimension with your great grandparents who loved you so much. Rest in peace.’
Locals launched a campaign to help Ulrich’s family with funeral expenses and set up collection jars in shops near his home in the aftermath of his death.
Briggs is being held in the UK before being extradited to Spain
Suspected killer Lewis Briggs was arrested in West Yorkshire before being handed over to Spanish authorities
No date has yet been set for Briggs’ jury trial, which will take place in a Malaga court.
It was not clear last night how he will plead when taking the stand, and whether the family of his alleged victim has also launched their own private prosecution that would run parallel but separately to the Spanish state prosecution.
A spokesman for the Spanish National Police confirmed after the extradition of Briggs from the UK in January 2021: ‘British police have handed over the suspected killer of a Spanish man who was arrested on 22 December last year.
“Police investigations have shown that the victim was about to cross a zebra crossing when he was almost run over by a vehicle whose driver had to brake hard.
The driver initially left the scene, but returned moments later and got out of his car and stabbed the pedestrian in the heart without warning, taking his own life almost immediately before driving off.
“Nothing could be done to save the victim’s life and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Detectives had identified a suspect and found that he had managed to flee Spain to England.
A European Arrest Warrant was issued which culminated in his arrest in West Yorkshire.
“The national police will now have to ensure that he is handed over to the Spanish judicial authorities.”
Steve Reynolds of the National Crime Agency’s international liaison network said at the time: ‘This was a heinous crime and we have worked closely with our Spanish partners to track down this suspect in the UK and have him brought to Spain to face trial now .
“We are working closely with international partners around the world to track down fugitives and make sure there is no safe haven anywhere.”