TAGGING OR JAIL

The government will soon have to decide if convicted Basque terrorist Iñaki De Juana Chaos is to spend the rest of his last three-year jail sentence under police supervision at home or go back to jail. Doctors at the hospital in San Sebastian where he has been recovering from a hunger strike since March 1st say he is now well enough to leave. The government incensed ETA victims when it said it would allow De Juan to go home for "humanitarian reasons", after serving only 17 years for the murder of 25 people when he was leader of ETA's Madrid commando group in the mid-80s. De Juana has said he will not wear an electronic tag if he is allowed home.

TEACHER AWARDED LESS THAN 9 EURO A DAY FOR ATTACK

Cordoba's Juvenile Court has sentenced the parents of a boy who attacked a teacher at a school in Posadas to pay a fine of 2,000 euros. The secretary general of the city's Independent Public Employees' Association told reporters that it was not enough. He said the teacher had to take 225 days off work to recover from the attack, which worked out at a compensation of 8,.9 euros a day.

MADELEINES PARENTS VISIT SPAIN

The parents of abducted Madeleine McCann were in Madrid last Friday as part of a tour of several European countries to publicise their daughter's case. They met the UK ambassador to Spain, Denise Holt, and Spanish Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba. The McCanns also appeared on a Spanish television programme called Los Mas Buscados (The Most Wanted) which appeals for help to find missing people. As well as making their own plea, they mentioned Spain's own missing child - seven-year-old Yeremi Vargas, who disappeared in the Canary Islands two months ago. Mr McCann said: "We do realise that there are other families in Spain who have had similar experiences, particularly the family of the young boy Yeremi from Gran Canaria. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and with other families going through a similar experience to us." Earlier, the couple met representatives from child welfare organisations, including the Associacion Contra la Pornogafia Infantil, an anti-paedophile group.

I NEVER THOUGHT IT COULD HAPPEN TO ME CAMPAING

In the Traffic Authority's latest campaign to convince people not to drink and drive, 110 people who have ended up in a wheelchair because of a traffic accident will be accompanying the Highway Guardia at breathalyser control points. Their message: "I never thought it could happen to me, but I had an accident and ended up in this wheelchair. Don't let it happen to you." Meanwhile, a judge in Logroño heard how a 58-year-old man killed two cyclists in two separate accidents 20 days apart. The man, who had a stroke a few months ago, told the judge he could remember the first accident but not the second, both of which happened on straight stretches of road. Police said he passed the breathalyser test on both occasions. The judge has not yet delivered a sentence.

FIVE MALAGA OFFICES BROKEN INTO

A gang of thieves broke into five offices in the same block in the centre of Málaga on the same night last week, and they gained access by kicking down the doors. The robberies occurred in Calle Panaderos, which runs parallel to the Alameda Principal, on the night of Sunday 24th May. The owners of the offices arrived on the Monday morning to find the police waiting for them, and the interior of their premises in chaos with papers and files thrown all over the place. The police suspect that the thieves were looking for money, but they were apparently unlucky as only one office is believed to have had cash inside. Owners and tenants of premises in the block have now held a meeting to discuss installing a security door at the entrance to the building, and they are also considering installing a video camera so they can see who is trying to get in.

TWO ARRESTED FOR IBIZA SHOOTING INCIDENCE

Officers from Fuengirola's Local Police force have arrested two people who they think were involved in a shooting incident in Ibiza in July last year. The men were travelling on a motorbike which was stopped during a routine check at the Torreblanca roundabout, and although the driver produced documentation in a different name, the police suspected that he is a British man who is allegedly a member of an international drug trafficking network, and who took part in a shoot-out between gangs in San Antonio, Ibiza, last summer. The drug trafficker is wanted by the Guardia Civil in San Antonio and there is also an extradition warrant out on him, issued by Belgium.

POLICE INSPECTORS ASK FOR TRANSFER

Two police inspectors who have been playing an important role in 'Operación Malaya' have asked to be transferred, reportedly because of lack of support from the General Police Department for the work they are carrying out in the investigation into massive corruption at Marbella Town Hall. Both officers are from one of the teams in the Money Laundering section of the Udyco squad on the Costa del Sol, and it is believed that they will be transferred to El Palo district of Málaga in the near future. They are said to be highly experienced and professional police officers, and their department has been responsible for investigating 'Operación Ballena Blanca' as well as the now famous 'Operación Malaya' which led to the dissolution of the former Marbella council and over 100 arrests so far. Their departure from the investigation comes before one of the most intriguing puzzles has been solved: the identity of an alleged 'mole' inside the police force who kept Juan Antonio Roca, who is suspected of being the brain behind the corruption, informed.

MARBELLA ASSETS SORTED

The new Marbella council will know exactly what belongs to the Town Hall when it takes over from the committee which has been running the town since the Malaya corruption scandal and the dissolution of the council. The committee has spent 13 months trying to discover what Marbella's assets are, and has come up with a total value of 524 million euros although its president, Diego Martín Reyes, believes the true figure is even higher. No list of assets had been drawn up since 1989, and he says this has been a complicated task because in the last 15 years the Town Hall obtained numerous properties as payment for town planning agreements and others were transferred to third parties. Some properties are still embargoed because of debts run up with the Banco de Crédito Local, which was later taken over by BBVA, by former mayor Jesús Gil y Gil.

BRITISH MAN AND SON IN COURT ACCUSED OF MURDER

A British man and his son who are standing trial for murder could face 17 years in jail if found guilty. That is the sentence proposed by the prosecution for the two men, who are accused of having robbed and killed a fellow Briton whose body was found at the bottom of a well near Álora two years ago. The case started in June 2005 when the victim, a builder known as Alfie, sacked the younger man because of a disagreement over money. This caused bad feeling between them, and they are said to have had a fight a few days later, in which Alfie was injured but didn't report the matter to the police. The young man is then reported to have told a friend that he hated his former employer so much that he planned to tie him up, kill him and throw his body down a well and then run off with all his money because he knew the PIN number of his credit card. According to the prosecution, on July 11th, the father and son engineered a meeting with Alfie in Cártama and pretended to have a business proposal for him. The three men then went off together, and the two hit him on the head so violently that he died almost instantly. They are then alleged to have tied his hands together, tied his body to a concrete block, and thrown him down a well at Arroyo de Pedro la Torre, in Álora. They are also accused of stealing 2,000 Pounds and 100 euros which their victim had been carrying, and stealing a total of 3,380 euros from his credit card. As well as the prison sentences, the prosecution is also asking that the two men be ordered to pay 180,000 euros in compensation to the victim's family.

ROCA PROPERTIES TO BE SOLD

The judge handling the case of corruption at Marbella Town Hall has authorised the sale of a mansion and a hotel belonging to Juan Antonio Roca, the former town planning advisor who is believed to have been behind the massive scandal. Both properties are registered in the name of a company called Condeor, which the authorities consider to be linked to Juan Antonio Roca, but the company's financial situation is poor and the judge has agreed that the Palacio de Saldaña in Madrid can be put on the market for over 15.5 million euros and the hotel, in Los Alcázares in Murcia, can be offered for 26.5 million. At the moment the company is said to be facing 11 court cases which could cost it several million euros, and the judge wants to ensure that the money is available to cover the costs and that its assets do not disappear.

MARIJUANA PLANTS FOUND AT RURAL PROPERTY

It appeared to be just a greenhouse, but its contents were rather different to the vegetables one would imagine were being grown there. Police discovered 200 marijuana plants when they searched a rural property just outside Almayate recently, and as one plant can be sold for 3,000 euros on the black market, the total haul was probably worth 600,000 euros. Two men have been arrested, one of whom is Spanish. This was one of the largest plantations of marijuana to be found in Málaga province, but top place goes to the discovery last year of 400 plants in the basement of a luxury villa in Marbella. Those plants were being grown in an artificial lake, with heat lamps directed at them to stimulate their growth. Investigators also discovered that the drugs which were allegedly produced there were subject to genetic modificication before being sold, to make them more addictive.

THIRTY CHEMISTS ROBBED THIS YEAR

So far this year there have been thirty robberies at chemists shops in Málaga province, and the authorities are so concerned about the situation that the police have drawn up a special plan to try to give better protection to the chemists and their staff. Working in conjunction with the College of Pharmacists, which is to provide the addresses and phone numbers of every one of the 600 shops, police all over the province will now change their patrol routes to include all the streets in which pharmacies are located, and hope that this will dissuade would-be robbers as well as providing reassurance to the staff. The police will give talks about possible security measures and what to do if a robbery does occur, regular meetings will be held with the councillor for public safety, and the College is promising to provide assistance with legal aspects after a robbery, and to stand as private prosecutor in any court cases resulting from a theft. The number of robberies at pharmacies is already 20% higher than last year, and several establishments have been targeted more than once. The thieves are normally hoping to find drugs such as Viagra which can be sold for a good price on the black market.

BOXER IS ARRESTED AGAIN

Seven months, this time after allegedly being involved in a fight at a nightclub in Alhaurín el Grande. He and two other men are reported to have had an argument with a client of the club and when the fighting began another client who came to his defence and the club owner, who tried to intervene, are both believed to have been attacked. The boxer, a featherweight champion, was remanded in custody in October last year accused of hitting a man in the face, leaving him unconscious and stealing his car. He was released on bail of 28,000 euros in November.

THREE YOUTHS ARRESTED FOR SEXUAL ATTACKS

Three youths from La Línea have been arrested by the Guardia Civil, accused of sexually assaulting three teenage girls in Alhaurín de la Torre on Monday morning. The young men, who were smartly dressed, had been to a family wedding and were returning from the celebrations when they met the girls at 8 a.m. and began talking to them. The girls, aged 13 and 14, were on their way to school, and the youths walked along with them for a while but are said to have then suddenly pushed them violently into the entrance to an apartment block and began trying to touch them in a sexual manner. One of the girls managed to escape, and she began pressing doorbells and calling for help but nobody came to her assistance. In the meantime, the youths allegedly forced the other two girls into one of the apartments, took them into separate bedrooms where other men were sleeping, and sexually assaulted them. One of them succeeded in getting away and as the youths tried to stop her, the other girl also escaped. The suspects have been charged with an offence against sexual liberty, and one of them is said to be under the age of 18.

BUS DRIVER ALL TIMES OVER LIMIT

33 Police stopped a bus carrying 46 schoolchildren on an excursion to Selwo Marina in Benalmádena last Friday after a teacher accompanying them rang the director of the school to report that the bus was weaving from one lane to another on the highway. The children thought the driver might have fallen asleep but he told them he was perfectly alright. The director rang the local police and when they breathalysed him ' at 10.15 am - they found he was 11 times over the limit. The police later discovered that he had had his licence suspended for one year for a similar incident.

EL CIDS SWORD DECLARED A FAKE

El Cid would never have believed it but his sword somehow got involved in the recent municipal elections. The sword, known as Tizona, was bought by the Castilla-Leon regional government and a group of Burgos businessmen for 1.6 million euros some time ago. Last week, the Culture Ministry announced that it was a fake. The ministry based its conclusion on reports by the National Heritage Department, the National Archaeological Museum and the Royal Academy History, all of which said the same thing: It wasn't El Cid's sword but could still be considered valuable because of its age and workmanship, and valued it at 250,000 euros. It was declared an Object of Cultural Interest by Royal Decree in 2002. Now the regional government, which is formed by the main opposition party, the Partido Popular, has accused the (Socialist) Culture Ministry of using the sword to sway voter intentions by highlighting the fact that it has chipped in with 600,000 euros to buy the sword. And if that wasn't enough an Asturian fisherman claims the sword was his, having been left it by the Marquis of Falces whose family have owned the sword since the 16th century. The fisherman said it was bequeathed to his family, who had served the marquis's family for generations. It is to be hoped all these problems are solved before the exhibition on "El Cid, del hombre a la leyenda (El Cid, from the man to the legend)" opens in Burgos Cathedral in September.

OWNER FORTIFIES JEWELLERY STORE

The owners of a jewellery store located on a busy corner opposite the Mosque in Cordoba have installed so many anti-robbery devices that it now looks like a fortress. The store has been robbed three times in the past year, twice by having a car driven into the window. On the third occasion the thieves smashed the window with a drain grill. In addition to the usual burglar alarm and "thief-proof" locks, bullet-proof unbreakable glass was installed last week, as well solid iron beams across the windows to stop the cars. The owner said the store had never been robbed during opening hours, only at night, but with all that extra protection, the thieves are going to have to change their working hours.

ABUSED PARENTS ON THE RISE

Abused children are often in the headlines but abused parents are only beginning to make the news. There have been several cases in recent months when parents have asked local authorities to take away their children because they can no longer put up with their abusive behaviour. Recently released figures show than 12% of minors - usually in their early teens - terrorise their parents and now that the subject is no longer taboo, the authorities warn that this figure can only rise.

BRITISH FAMILY HELD HOSTAGE

A British family had a terrifying experience last week when they were reportedly held hostage by a gang of armed men for two hours. The five young men accosted the 24 year old British man in the street in Fuengirola at gunpoint and forced him to drive them in his car to the nearest cash machine and withdraw money but it appears that the machine retained the card because of an error in the PIN number. The gang then made the man drive to his home in the town centre to get another bank card or to give them cash, and they accompanied him inside the apartment, where his wife and two young children were. The thieves took 50 euros in cash and two mobile phones, and four of them then made the young father get back into the car with them, with the intention of going to another cash machine, while the other one stayed with the woman and children. He is reported to have made sexual innuendos to her and to have attempted to touch her, whereupon she got up from the sofa where she had been sitting and announced that she was going to call the police. The man then fled, and the other four also got out of the car and ran off.

ANAESTHETIST JAILED

Anaesthetist Juan Maeso, 65, who has hepatitis C, was sentenced last week to nearly 2,000 years in prison for infecting hundreds of patients with the virus. He had infected 275 people between 1988 and 1997, by injecting himself with a morphine syringe before using the rest on a patient. Four of them have since died. Valencia's Provincial Court sentenced Mr Maeso, who is a morphine addict, to 1,933 years in jail but the most he can serve under Spanish law is 20 years. He was also ordered to 150,000 euros to each of the families of the four people who died.