Olive Press Newspaper – Issue 253 by Olive Press Newspaper Spain

s ar ! e y ay 10 tod

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Vol. 10 Issue 253 www.theolivepress.es November 23rd - December 6th 2016

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The storms blow in 10 Olive Press commandments WE’VE exposed crooks, fingered most wanted criminals and fought for expat and environmental rights across Spain for a decade now. As we reach our 10th anniversary we continue to stick to our principles of proper journalism, leaving no stone unturned while asking awkward questions that others shy away from. It has not always been easy, but at no point have we let our standards drop. As Moses would say...

...Thou shalt:

Stand up for l issues environmenta Expose conmen and fraudsters

by Not be intimidatedwer politicians and po

III IV V

Broaden readers’ VI thr views ou

VII VIII

Honour thy expats and advertisers Seek to cut out all corruption

gh supplements

Entertain and inf orm Seek top eateries restaurant reviewin s

Integrate readers’ culture and historyinto

Remember deadlin day, book no holid e ays

Decade of success Pages 19-30

Happy anniversary

I would like to send my congratulations to the Olive Press team, who have been keeping Brits in Andalucia informed for the past ten years.

Simon Manley, British Ambassador to Spain

Collared

WINTER IS COMING: Clouds gather over the Sierra de Grazalema as Andalucia is finally battered by heavy rainfall

EXCLUSIVE By Rob Horgan

AN embattled animal shelter is the subject of yet another abuse investigation. Kim’s Animal Rescue is being probed, just 10 weeks after moving to Almeria from Mijas, it can be revealed. It comes after the new shelter in Gador was denounced by neighbours over claims that up to 100 dogs on its premises were ‘starving’. Officers from the Guardia Civil’s Seprona animal welfare arm have allowed owner Kim Halliwell to keep around 75 dogs at the site, while an investigation proceeds. Last night, the Mancunian confirmed the raid and admitted she is still waiting for a licence for the new centre. She claimed she had to leave her old premises in Mijas - where she still

Controversial pet shelter probed again after moving headquarters

has 25 dogs - after being forced to sell up and demolish the buildings. “I know the new centre here is not ready,” Halliwell told the Olive Press. “And Seprona have told me I cannot move my remaining dogs because of paperwork issues.” She added: “I really had no choice. As part of the sale agreement I had to demolish the kennels and so I had nowhere else to take the dogs. “We are currently in the process of getting a licence.” Her old centre, which was on the market for €180,000, has been recently sold to northern European buyers.

Halliwell had been forced to sell up after running into financial difficulties, when she was ordered by Mijas Town Hall to repay €20,000 after missing several payments on a loan initially taken out to build kennels. A further €12,000 is due over the next five years. Critics of the shelter claimed Kim and her daughter Kelly were ‘not capable of running a centre’. In an Olive Press investigation in 2014, dozens of former volunteers slammed the treatment of animals. President of Estepona animal shelter Adana Mary Page, 71, told the Olive Press that the latest investigation comes as ‘no surprise’. “Kim always had problems in Mijas and it looks like she is doing the same thing again in Almeria.” She added: “She never had the correct licences while she was in Mijas. It gives us all a bad name.” Opinion Page 6

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GRAZALEMA is receiving its infamous heavy winter rains, that allegedly make it one of Spain’s wettest places. It comes as forecasters warned that Andalucia is receiving the brunt of the wet weather that is wreaking havoc across Spain. While 36 provinces have been placed on high wind and heavy rainfall alerts, the worst of the rain will fall in the south, with Andalucia having the heaviest, most persistent downpours, according to weather agency AEMET.

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CRIME

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November 23rd - December 6th 2016

‘Pet twisted Tattoo ‘killer’ nailed killer’ in the dock A GERMAN man wanted for murder has been caught in Spain because of his tattoo. Dominik R. was arrested by Catalan police after the body of his 20-year-old girlfriend,

A WOMAN first exposed by the Olive Press is accused of slaughtering more than 2,100 cats and dogs at a Costa Del Sol animal shelter. Carmen Marin’s animal shelter in Torremolinos was meant to be a haven for unwanted pets. But a court has heard that between 2008 and 2010 Marin and assistant Felipe Barco injected the animals with drugs that caused a slow, agonising death. In 2012, the Olive Press first revealed a police probe into Marin, as well as a close relationship between her and Torremolinos Town Hall. Court documents showed she made a series of unexplained payments totalling over €50,000 to ex-mayor Pedro Fernandez Montes’ brother.

Lisa, was discovered in Freyung. But Spanish cops tracked him down after a tattoo on his arm showing Lisa’s name, date of birth, the date she died and ‘Thanks For

Everything’ was identified. Prior to his arrest, he posted a photo at the Eiffel Tower, withdrew cash in Valladolid and was seen driving along the Mediterranean coast.

Mozart for marijuana

EXCLUSIVE By Laurence Dollimore

CULTURED marijuana farmers have been playing classical music to enhance the growth of their crops. In a scene, worthy of hit TV show Breaking Bad, the music-loving criminals played a permanent loop of Mozart and Vivaldi to en-

Cultured drug gang utilised classical music to enhance growth of crops

courage faster growth. Police in Almeria were left amazed when they raided their warehouse in Almeria. The gang had utilised the

method, it emerged, at various isolated farmhouses they rented in the province. Each farm was protected by CCTV and armed guards were employed to watch over the entrances. The music is believed to have alleviate any potential ‘stress’ the plants could have been feeling.

Elias Tempton, a weed grower at the legal medical marijuana dispensary in Denver in the US, said the that the melodies of Chopin and Beethoven have also been seen to increase the drug’s potency. “You can notice a difference,” he said, “They don’t need it to be loud, they just need it to be audible.”

‘Sick’ Amy impersonators on Facebook Congratulations on your anniversary! We look forward to the party invite! Alex Radford, My Lawyer in Spain:

THE mother of missing Amy Fitzpatrick has slammed ‘sick’ people using images of her daughter for fake Facebook profiles. Audrey Fitzpatrick said she is ‘disgusted’ over profiles impersonating her daughter and herself.

The profiles for a ‘Chloe Ville Anckarstrom’ and ‘Kelly Harrison’ include pictures of Amy, who went missing at the age of 15, in La Cala, in 2008. Facebook is currently investigating after Audrey submitted a formal complaint.

“I'm disgusted how people can do this,” she said. “I am here to defend myself but Amy is not. And for someone to use Amy's face as their own makes my blood boil.” Audrey’s partner Dave Mahon is currently in jail for the killing Amy’s brother.

Lawyers target ‘black’ economy MORE than 50 international lawyers are demanding the creation of an International Anti-Corruption Court. The group from 25 countries, led by top Spanish lawyer Javier Cremades, want the court to deal with global money laundering and terrorist financing. “We have a problem of political governance. The law creates artificial barriers that harms consumers and that complicates national and international lawsuits,” said Cremades. Since 2007, the percentage of Spain’s GDP run by the black market is estimated to have grown from 11.2% to up to 22%.

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Road to Marbs BRENDAN SHEERIN has begun filming his new series Coach Trip: Road to Marbella. The show follows famed tour leader Brendan, who lives in Malaga, and a group of teenagers as they travel through seaside towns across Spain on the way to Marbs. The 14 youths stop off at several towns on the way to discover and learn about local cultures. They most recently stopped off in Aguilas, in Murcia, where they were welcomed by the councillor for culture Lucia Hernandez before taking in the sights.

November 23rd - December 6th 2016

Aero-vederci Spain! SPAIN has been included as a stop off for Aerosmith’s farewell tour. The massive US rockers, led by Steve Tyler, will be playing in Madrid and Barcelona as part of their Aero-vederci Baby tour. The four-time Grammy winners are set to play 15 countries in three months including Madrid on June 29 and Barcelona’s huge Rock Fest on July 2.

Bieber-lona

Peeved

QUEEN Letizia has been criticised for looking ‘furious’ at the official opening of parliament. The former journalist looked decidedly peeved, as she sat beside her two daughters Leonor and Sofia for the session. Her ‘attitude’ provoked a backlash on social media, with some observers speculating that she was unhappy with the victory of Mariano Rajoy. Others insisted she was unhappy that her daughters had to miss a day of school and be placed in the limelight - something she tries hard to avoid for them.

Global superstar kicks about with Barca’s finest

JUSTIN Bieber has had a kickabout with the Barcelona football team during his world tour. The 22-year-old heartthrob also showed off his ball skills in a kick around with midfielder Rafinha and Brazilian Neymar, who tweeted a pic of their on-pitch encounter. “Impossible to dribble PAZ VEGA has made a permanent this defender,” Neyreturn to her homeland after pursumar said. ing her dreams in Los Angeles for the He later posed for selfpast ten years. The 40-year-old Spanies with the footballing ish actress - best known for her role idols, also including in ‘Spanglish’ - has Lionel Messi and Luis moved back to the Suarez, before heading Spanish capital of back to his Barcelona Madrid with her hotel ahead of his conVenezuelan huscert. band Orson SalaMeanwhile, hundreds zar. of Beliebers have been Paz, from Sevilla, queuing for almost wants to raise the a month in Madrid three children she to ensure they got as has with Orson in close as possible to the her home country.

Paz back to pais

CLOCKING ‘UN: Burgess

Rock on! THE secret links of punk icon Sid Vicious and author Anthony Burgess to Gibraltar are laid bare in the latest edition of Gib Rocks. In the second installment of Gibraltar’s newest, most exciting read, Gib Rocks reveals how Burgess’s cult classic A Clockwork Orange was inspired by time spent on the Rock and in La Linea. Meanwhile, t h e tale of Sid Vicious’s border mercy dash, after his drug-dealing mother fled from Ibiza, is revealed. Exclusive interviews with Miss Gibraltar Kayley Mifsud and independent MP Marlene Hassan Nahon are also a must read as well as all you need to know about Christmas on the Rock.

PALS: Bieber with footie friends

star when he performed at the Palacio de Deportes.

Strictly beaten A SPANISH Strictly Come Dancing star has lost two teeth after being beaten up in Blackpool. Gorka Marquez, 26, was attacked by a group of youths while he was making his way to the Flamingo nightclub. He had to have emergency dental surgery in a bid to save his Hollywood smile. Marquez, from Bilbao, was enjoying a night out with the cast and crew just hours after performing in the live show at the Tower Ballroom. He was targeted by the gang who planned the attack and ambushed him as he made his way to the club with his BBC colleagues Aljaz Skorjanec and Neil Jones.

Nadal’s net gain RAFAEL Nadal has spent €9,000 on a hair transplant. The Spanish tennis star spent 10 hours undergoing the Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) procedure at a specialist clinic in Madrid. Nadal had 4,500 follicles transplanted.

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Happy anniversary ‘Stayingpower’ for any business on the Costa del Sol is an achivement in itself. Reaching 10 years has to be a testament to the quality journalism and a happy readership. The Olive Press definitely ticks both boxes. Sunset beach club are delighted to have been a part of this success so offer a big congratulatons to Jon and his team and here’s looking forward to another 10 years of entertaining and informative news.

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November 23rd - December 6th 2016

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Happy anniversary

The Butterfly Children Charity, DEBRA, would like to congratulate you on your 10th anniversary. It is a great journey you have had to date and we very much value that you’re always beside the charities and the causes they represent. Thank you for giving us wings! Evanina Makow, DEBRA director

Mango migrants TEN Kurdish migrants have been found sealed in a container belonging to fashion retailer Mango in Spain. Staff were shocked to discover four children, five men and a woman bundled inside the container when they opened it at the company’s logistics centre in Barcelona. One of the group was vomiting and all ten were sent to hospital as a precaution, but they were described as being in ‘generally good health.’ They had paid a large sum of money and expected to be taken to Britain from their initial departure in Istanbul. Mango has said it will pay for their upkeep while their status is being ascertained.

A NEW coastal walkway bridge is finally linking Sabinillas and Casares after a 13-year wait. The 33-metre long wooden structure has been hoisted into place over the mouth of the Rio Manilva to connect the two communities. Until now, people have had to walk across the beach and get their feet wet during the winter months. Or they have had to cross over the busy motorway bridge. It is the latest stage in the ambitious La Senda Litoral project, which aims to create a giant walkway stretching 160km from Manilva to Nerja. The mayors of both towns told the Olive Press they were ‘delighted’ that it had finally been installed.

November 23rd - December 6th 2016

Bridging the gap

AN expat couple have been left ‘devastated’ after their town hall carried out a dramatic lastminute U-turn on plans to build a one-way system through their home. Disabled Brit John Gray and his wife Deborah’s home in Alhaurin el Grande is to be demolished to make way for the road. This is despite the town hall promising that the road would be diverted around their home, following an Olive Press story in April. “It is absolutely heartbreaking,” telesales worker Deborah, 57, told the Olive Press. “We were promised that the plans would be altered to avoid our home but the town hall have gone back on their word and there is nothing we can do.” The adjoining houses have already been demolished, leaving a ‘gateway’ into their home

A Estepona Big clean-up

ll about

Vol. 10 Issue 238 www.theolivepress.es

April 27th - May 10th 2016

From its potted geraniums and cultivated orchids to its seafaring virgin and its Banksystyle outdoor art gallery, it’s sweet to live in Estepona, writes Iona Napier

BIGGEST and BEST Estepona

COULD have sworn I saw the huge, ornate effigy of the Virgin Mary wink at me as she was hoisted down to the sea on the shoulders of a bunch of strapping sailors last summer. As the sun dipped below the horizon on the most electric night of the year, she was launched out to sea in a dinghy to be greeted by a flotilla of lamp-lit boats laden to their plimsoll lines with revellers, while others waded into the water to get a better look. This was Estepona on the night of the Virgen del Carmen, a festival that brings expats, Spanish families and holidaymakers down to the water’s edge en masse to watch the proceedings agog. It’s surely Malaga’s answer to the Oxford-Cambridge boat race, as feisty and Spanish as the UK event is uptight and British. For many, Estepona is the last bastion of ‘big resort’ charm on the Costa del Sol. The town has ramped up its appeal with a ‘hanging garden’ of geraniums sprouting from multicoloured pots on every wall of every street, not to mention the colourful murals which can be spotted across town. And it has gone one better than the plantpots with its exotic glass-domed orchidarium. The futuristic greenhouse with more than 8,000 species of orchids and three waterfalls has welcomed more than 250,000 people over the last 12 months and they continue to arrive by the coach load.

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STILL MISSING: Amy

Amy’s stepdad ‘gutted’ brother

supplement ever - From

olive press

street art and (top left) geranium-lined streets IMPRESSIVE: Estepona has cleaned up its act with beautiful The two busiest axes are the beachfront strip for everyone. old First, grab a fistful of maps from the Plaza de (Avenida Espana) and the road through the Flores tourist office in the old town’s prettiest town (Calle Terraza), while horseshoe-shaped Avenida de Andalucia curves protectively around square (or the other office in the marina). With two walking tours, an art walk and a poetry Continued Page 20 route, the best way to see Estepona is on foot.

Sandwiched between the ocean and the high sierras of Bermeja, Estepona does surf and turf in style. And just like the old ditty about Jack Sprat and his wife, between the traditional old town and the bustling modern port which prop up either end of the promenade, there’s something

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April 27th - May 10th

its bumper radio auction event on November 25 from 10am to 7pm in aid of Cudeca Cancer Care Hospice. The station, which has hosted numerous telethons for the charity, wants to double the €50,000 raised last year. Tickets for the X Factor tour, beauty treatments, hotel stays and restaurant meals are among the many items up for grabs. Money raised last year financed a home visit team to help terminally ill people spend their last days at home. Visit www.tretelethon.com for more information.

P19

2016

GETTING A GRILLING

the good life

Now in Andalucía! Follow us: Holland & Barrett Andalucía

Olive Press meets world’s best chefs including Ferran Adria (left), and Daniel Humm Turn to Page 7

One-way injustice

THE stepfather of Amy Fitzpatrick hasmissing finally gone on trial for murder. Former Mijas estate agent Dave Mahon is accused of killing the missing teenager’s brother in a savage stabbing incident. A court in Dublin heard how Mahon, 46, literally his stepson Dean, 23,‘gutted’ fish in the attack in May like a The jury heard how a row2013. had broken out over the tampering of Mahon’s bicycle outside a gym. The pair squared up over incident at Mahon’s home the lat- A DISABLED er that evening, after expat is being been drinking heavily. he had forced out of his home so a Expats slam ‘insulting’ compulsory one-way system can be “Mahon arrived back built. had a carving knife,”in and Retired bricklayer John Gray, purchase of their home said 76, and his prosecution barrister Remy been given wife Deborah have Farrell. just two months EXCLUSIVE condition. vacate their dream home to By Rob Horgan Plans for a one-way receiving a compulsory after system were first mooted in 1994 pur- property for miles Suicidal chase order from Alhaurin beel that sort of money.”around for fore being put on hold. “The prosecution case Grande Town Hall. However, the Grays were The couple had bought Mahon stabbed Dean is that The couple have only the rick in the abdomen. Fitzpat- lawyers after theybrought in two-bedroom, two-bathroom notified that the work was fiwere of- home for nally going ahead last “There was a piece of intes- fered an ‘insulting’ €35,000 ing from€66,000 after mov- They were initially year. tine protruding,” he said. told that for their property, Hertfordshire in they could stay in their home common terms, he had “In them three times which cost 2003. They were later forced as much af- to spend been gutted.” a further €30,000 but would need to demolish ter renovations. Dean’s “It is completely heart-break- on renovations after John suf- their extension. girlfriend However, in March the fered from a stroke in O’Rourke told the courtSarah ing,” telesales worker plans 2014, that Mahon threatened to rah, 57, told the Olive Debo- leaving him with limited mo- were changed and the new CRUEL: Couple’s fight knife into my head or ‘stick a am going crazy at the Press. “I bility and the need of a mobil- road will mean knocking for justice moment, ity scooter. down the entire home. The jury heard that neck’. but I have not given up anyway,” Deborah added hope. The town hall has given He also suffers from attempted to flee the Mahon “I have to keep going last the night. a lung couple the option later claiming Dean scene, life, but I have started with my disease called COPD and to take the what “We simply don’t know had acis €35,000 or packing currently undergoing to do but hope that juscidentally walked onto in case the worst happens.” tests for owned plot move to a co- tice will prevail.” suspected ‘twice the size’, knife, then changing his the She added: “To A spokesman offer us As well ascancer. where to say Dean was suicidal.story €35,000 is an insult. looking after her ning they will have plan- hall confirmed for the town It is a husband, Deborah permission to build two that plans for a Fitzpatrick’s sister, third of what we have spent cares for houses. one-way system were on her 77-year-old went missing in SpainAmy, it and you cannot in place mother Chrisbut buy another tina, who New Year’s Day 2008, on suffers from a heart “It is all so vague and we have workwould not confirm when not got the money to would continuing questions with build further on begin or comment the case. about her relationshipraised her mother and Mahon. with Mahon and his partner, drey Fitzpatrick, moved AuAmy and Dean to Spainwith in 2004. The Olive Press revealed she had been unhappy, that drinking and was living semi-rough For all your in the Calahonda area, with before glasses insurance needs! she went missing.

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for opportunistic burglars, who have raided their home a number of times. So far around £600 worth of the Grays’ possessions have been stolen, including a power washer, kitchen appliances and tools. Retired bricklayer John Gray, 76, from Hertfordshire, uses a wheelchair due to a lung disease called COPD and is currently undergoing tests for suspected cancer. The couple are now being forced to take the €35,000 originally offered by the town hall, despite paying €66,000 for the two-bed, two-bathroom property in 2003. A town hall spokesman said that they had looked into alternatives but no written agreement was ever agreed.

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EXCLUSIVE By Rob Horgan

News IN BRIEF

LA Linea homeless charity Hogar Betania has launched its Christmas Toy campaign to ensure underprivileged children receive a gift. For Information email: c_moya_ langston@hotmail.com

Broken promise One-way street to be built through disabled expat’s living room, despite town hall promise

CHARGED: Mahon and Audrey

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ANGER: The Grays

‘King of Marbella’ thrown in jail over Bentley’s flash number plate Page 3

Priors: ‘We’ve been dumped on by Spanish politicians who are the dregs of the earth’ Page 6

Pixies and Pete head to Spain for best-ever summer festival lineup Page 16

GIBRALTARIANS could be forced to pay €5 to enter Spain under new EU proposals. Various European chiefs reacted positively to the plan to make non-EU residents pay to enter EU countries at a Brussels meeting. The EU Travel Information and Authorization System (Etias) could be activated by 2020 as part of new anti-terrorism policies. It wants non EU-residents over 18, including British people, to pay the current rate of £4.30 before entering Spain or any of the other 25 Schengen states. A register would record their personal details and those signed up will be able to make multiple trips over a five-year period.

SPAIN’S trade deficit has fallen by 29% to €13.2 billion between January and September this year.

Fan stabbed A JUVENTUS football fan has been stabbed in an altercation ahead of his team’s away game against Sevilla, he remains in a stable condition.

Weeded out FOUR Britons have been arrested in Murcia over a ‘mail-order’ cannabis service in which they sold the drug to the UK and Ireland.

fe at u re

www.theolivepress.es Voted top expat paper in Spain

CLOSE CALL: Elena nearly got sucked in by Acklom (below)

A campaigning, community newspaper, the Olive Press represents the huge expatriate community in southern Spain - 200,000 copies distributed monthly (130,000 digitally) with an estimated readership, including the website, of more than 500,000 people a month.

OPINION Catch him! IT seems we will never know how many women or people Mark Acklom has tried to defraud across Spain and the UK, and his lies seem to know no bounds! His arrogance must be through the roof if he thinks he can get women like Elena Escuverra to believe his ridiculous MI6 fantasies. Luckily she could see through his tall tales and hopefully he won’t be able to prey on more vulnerable women. He clearly has maternal issues and needs to get some help! Let’s hope he is caught sooner than later so he can face justice for his lies and betrayals that have left so many people’s lives in tatters!

EXCLUSIVE By Laurence Dollimore

LENA Escuverra was anything but happy when she joined the dating website Match.com in early 2011. She hated her job, had just been diagnosed with diabetes and was single and alone at 39, looking for love in an image-obsessed Marbella. So when the tall brunette began exchanging messages with a dashing ‘British lawyer’ named George, her heart naturally fluttered. An attorney for the Saudi Royal family, George, who was based in London, seemed to know all the right people and had even dated the daughter of former prime minister Adolfo Suarez. Claiming to have property in Zagaleta, Spain’s most exclusive enclave, and other investments in Marbella, she understandably believed he could be her knight in shining armour.

Manhunt

On the pulse THE latest raid at Kim’s Animal Rescue Centre is as unsurprising as it is important. Since our initial investigation two years ago, dozens of former employees and rattled animal activists have contacted us with worrying tales of abuse and mistreatment at the shelter. And, in our 10th anniversary edition, it is fitting to splash on a story that combines animal rights and expats under investigation: two issues that we have time and again covered over the last decade. On top of that it is testament to our sources for keeping us on the pulse with important, breaking stories that go unnoticed, ignored and unreported in other newspapers on the coast. Keep them coming!

Publisher/ Editor

Jon Clarke jon@theolivepress.es

Newsdesk newsdesk@theolivepress.es Tel: (+34) 665 798 618

Héctor Santaella (+34) 658 750 424 accounts@theolivepress.es Admin and account assistant

Rob Horgan rob@theolivepress.es Joe Duggan joe@theolivepress.es Laurence Dollimore laurence@theolivepress.es Admin & Accounts (+34) 951 273 575 Maria González admin@theolivepress.es Admin and accounts coordinator

Designer James Partington design@theolivepress.es Distribution Graham Warters distribution@theolivepress.es SALES TEAM: sales@theolivepress.es Chris Birkett - Head of Sales chris@theolivepress.es (+34) 652 512 956

Head office

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AWARDS

2015/2016 Best expat paper in Spain and the second best in the world. The Expat Survey Consumer Awards.

2012 - 2016

Named the best English language publication in Andalucia by the Rough Guides group.

However the handsome ‘George’ was in fact Mark Acklom, one of Britain’s most prolific fraudsters and now a famous face on Crimestoppers top ten Most Wanted fugitives list.

HEN Leonard Cohen broke into Save the Last Dance for Me at his final Spanish concert, it was a love song to the country that shaped his music and lyrics. At 78, his 2012 farewell at Madrid’s Palacio de Deportes marked the climax to almost 40 years of performances in the country, which began in Barcelona in 1974. But far beyond being one of his favourite places to tour Cohen, who died on November 7 aged 82, credited Spanish culture for influencing his entire musical career. The true extent of Spain’s importance to Cohen was not widely known until 2011, when he received the prestigious Prince of Asturias award in Oviedo, conferred for his achievements in the arts with hits like Hallelujah and Suzanne. In his acceptance speech, he revealed how he learned to play classical guitar from a Spanish musician, after their chance meeting in his hometown of Montreal. “He was playing a flamenco guitar, and he was surrounded by two or three girls and boys who were listening to him”, Cohen recalled. “I loved the way he played. There was something about the way he played that captured me.” Cohen asked him for lessons and the two met at his mother’s house. “He took the guitar and he produced a sound from that guitar that I’d never heard... a six chord progression that many, many flamenco songs are based on,” explained the artist. “It was those six chords... it was that guitar pattern that has been the basis of all my songs and all my music.” The young Spaniard never returned to the house to give Cohen further lessons. Tragically, he committed suicide the following day. “I knew nothing about the man. I did not know what part of Spain he came from…. I was deeply saddened, of course,” said Cohen who, from that moment on, switched from acoustic to classical guitar. The Spanish chord pattern that imprinted on Cohen’s mind melded seamlessly with his penchant for other aspects of Latin culture. In the same acceptance speech he told the audience: “I have a Conde guitar, which was made in Spain in the great workshop at Number 7 Gravina Street (Madrid); a beautiful instrument that I acquired over 40 years ago.” But the musician’s love affair with Spain runs deeper than guitars and chords. As many Cohen fans will know, it was celebrated Spanish poet Federico García Lorca who gave him his ‘tongue’.

November 23rd - December 6th 2016

M a r k’s

Elena Escuverra thought she had found the man of her dreams - a charming, well-dressed British lawyer with links to Spain’s upper echelons of power and the Saudi royal family... Sought in various countries, Acklom - who also uses the names Mark Ros, Ros Marc Rodriguez, Mark Desmond, Zack Moss among others - has spent ten years behind bars in Britain and Spain and defrauded dozens, if not hundreds, of people around the world. One of these, British divorcee Carolyn Woods, 55, lost nearly one million euros to the conman, while various others have since come forward. Indeed, it was only during a recent manhunt for Acklom - who the Olive Press traced to Murcia last month that the ‘scary and seedy’ episode in Elena’s life came back to haunt her. The attractive estate agent, based in Marbella, revealed this week that she had been pursued relentless-

ON BOARD: Acklom on boat and by sports car ly by Acklom, who claimed to have numerous business interests on the Costa del Sol. “We were soon having a love affair via phone, email and text,” she recalled. “He told me he had a building plot in Zagaleta and that we could start a life there when he sold all of his invest-

The last dance After nearly four decades touring in Spain, Leonard Cohen’s love affair with his ‘second home’ ran as deep as his musical poetry, writes Chloe Glover

“I studied the English poets and I copied their styles, but I could not find a voice,” Cohen said. “It was only when I read, even in translation, the works of Lorca that I understood that there was a voice. “It is not that I copied his voice; I would not dare. But he gave me permission to find a voice.” Cohen adapted Lorca’s Pequeño Vals Vienés for his single, Take This Waltz, from his 1986 Lorca tribute album Poets in New York. The accompanying video was shot in Granada, Lorca’s home, featuring sweeping vistas of the Alhambra. Cohen used the occasion to visit Lorca’s birthplace, Fuente Vaqueros, where the author’s Casa Museo had just opened. And to consolidate his admiration for the poet’s

work, Cohen named his daughter Lorca. Recently, political group Vamos Granada launched a bid to have the Canadian officially recognised due to the special relationship he had with the city. “Leonard Cohen is the history of our music and lyrics,” it said. Famed flamenco singer Enrique Morente also made a lasting impression on Cohen. The two were introduced in one of Lorca’s favourite Madrid bars in 1993. They went on to release Morente’s Omega album in 1996, a homage to Lorca containing some of Cohen’s lyrics. Cohen struck up another notable relationship with Aragon multi-instrumentalist Javier Mas while staging a musical comeback after a long

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Each print issue of the Olive Press can be read in its entirety on November 23rd - Decemberwww.theolivepress.es 6th 2016 And our site is updated daily with the latest news, making it one of Spain’s most visited news websites.

olive press online October 2015

w eb

...But what seemed too good to be true, soon dissolved into a terrifying obsession and a toxic web of lies, all spun by Britain’s most wanted fraudster Mark Acklom

ments in Spain. “He said he had owned a massive ice cream business in Alicante, which had failed and almost left him bankrupt, but he was now making a recovery. “He insisted that he lived in Mayfair and had many other

SORELY MISSED: Leonard Cohen struggle with depression. He first rang Mas in 2007 to ask about his arrangements on an album that used the 12- string bandurria. The relationship reached its peak when Mas accepted an invitation to play in Cohen’s band on his final world tour, Old Ideas. Cohen’s love affair with Spain is far from unrequited. Spaniards, too, have embraced his hauntingly dark and powerful voice. He has been well-known here since his 1967 debut album, Songs of Leonard Cohen, as three of the tracks were used on the soundtrack for the film Mccabe and Mrs Miller, released in Spain as Los Vividores. His songs have been covered by numerous artists, from Espaldamaceta y Maria Rodés’ El Partisano to Russian Red’s So Long, Marianne. Writer Alberto Manzano cemented Cohen’s place in Spaniards’ contemporary cultural canon when he created the 2007 tribute album, According to Leonard Cohen, with half a dozen Latin acts. He went on to scribe his biography in 2010. Returning to the final remarks of Cohen’s Prince of Asturias speech, the dapper maestro described how Spanish culture had left him humbled. “It was the base of all my songs and all my music so now you begin to understand the dimensions of gratitude I have for this soil,” he said. “Everything you have found favourable comes from this place and is inspired from this soil. “It’s really your work, you have allowed me to sign my name at the bottom of the page.”

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- MISSING: 17-year-old British expat missing fortnight on (23,270) from Costa del Sol since Friday www.theolivepress.es

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SUAVE: Acklom in London

had worked in the security detail of two prime ministers, started to realise something was up. “My uncle knew the family of former leader Adolfo Suarez, whose daughter Mark claimed to have dated, and he told me one had died of business interests in the UK.” cancer and one was happily married. She continued: “He was emailing me four or five “When I put it to Mark, he shrugged it off nertimes a day and ringing me at least three times, vously and failed to give me an answer. he became obsessed,” Elena said. “Somehow “My intuition said something was not right.” I knew to be wary, but he was very convincing While she saw him over a couple of days in Lonand forward.” don, she refused to go to bed with him, believing One thing led to another and he had soon perhe was spinning a web of lies. suaded her to fly over to meet him in London. But that was not the end of the relationship. Paying for a ticket on British Airways to London When she returned to Spain, Elena says Acklom Gatwick, in March 2011, he arranged to meet hounded her with texts and calls, promising her her at one of the airport hotels, where he had the earth and talking about numerous projects booked a room. on the Costa del Sol. “I was excited to actually meet him, but as soon The deceit would have come easily to Acklom, as we met he was so nervous,” she continued. who started his fraudster ways as a teenager, “He was shaking and started to cry within minstealing his mother’s mink coat to sell for a utes. It was not the image of the confident and quick buck. sure man I had been speaking to... it was very At 16, he spent £11,000 on his father’s stostrange, he seemed more like a scared child.” len American Express card before posing as When Acklom calmed down, he confessed that a stockbroker in a £1million fraud — wearing there was something he had to tell her. handmade suits, buying a £500,000 mansion, “He said he had been working undercover for and taking girlfriends to the Canary Islands on MI6 in British intelligence, infiltrating the IRA. a private jet. “He even pulled his socks down and showed me But Elena wasn’t buying it. scars that he said he received from She contacted one of Marbelbeing tortured with electricity.” la’s top law firms, who Acklom It wouldn’t be the first time Acktold her he regularly hired. lom would spin the MI6 line. Just The firm, who we are not nama year later he would give the ing for legal reasons, agreed to same story to the then 41-yearsee Elena and in a meeting at old divorcee Carolyn Woods, the swish Golden Mile office, who he famously scammed out incredibly backed up many of of her €990,000 life savings. Acklom’s claims. “He said that’s why he had two “The lawyer confirmed that Ackpassports and he admitted he lom was a client and that he had given me a fake name of was worth €7 billion and that George, and that his real name he even had his own private jet,” was Mark. she explained. “He confirmed all “He begged me to move to the things that Mark had been England, he said he could give telling me - he even said he had me a job as his PA for €12,000 flown a few women to London a month and that I could be FAMILY: Acklom and paid for their expensive hodriven in a continental Bentley as a child tels, chauffeurs and meals.” and live in the house in Mayfair or Sandbanks. He showed me photos of both on emails.” Lucky escape As she got to know him better, he told her he The lawyer claimed that the actual reason Ackdespised his mother, and blamed her for the lom couldn’t visit Spain was because he had not problems of his youth. paid in full for a rental car in Malaga and failed “He told me that his mother sent him away to a to show up in court. It led to a warrant for his boarding school and he hated it,” she said, “He arrest, which they were dealing with. then started working at 16 and bought a house “However, luckily he eventually warned me to by lying about his age, but his mother found out stay away from him, he said Acklom is a very and he was given a choice, go to jail or attend a possessive man and very jealous. strict religious school, he chose the latter, which “It’s strange when I think about it now because he said is where he got his law degree. it’s hard to believe such a highly respected law “He told me so many times that he never wantfirm could be so easily fooled like me.” ed to see his mother again and that he hated Either way, Elena took the lawyer’s advice and her, but he never once mentioned his father. began responding less and less to Acklom. “I think he has maternal issues and issues with “At one point he was hounding me so much I female relationships. feared for my life, I did not know what this man “He told me that he was obsessed with sex and was capable of and he knew where I lived. always wanted me to wear La Perla lingerie, he Luckily for Elena he eventually stopped contactonce said to me ‘once you wear La Perla you will ing her around August, just, coincidentally as he never want to wear anything else’.” moved onto his next victim Woods. She continued: “Clearly what he needed was to “I realise I was lucky. I was in a bad period of my be loved like a child, not like a man. I think he is life, and maybe he thought that I was vulnerable trying to make up for something he missed in and easier to manipulate.” his childhood.” Elena believes that no matter where he is now, When Elena suggested Mark visited Spain, he almost certainly in Spain still, he will carry on his declined, saying he did not have a good relation‘game’ with women because it’s like an addicship with the then prime minister Jose Zapatero, tion for him. “I know that he will do this until the a socialist, whose election campaign he had day he dies, it’s like a sick game to him.” been openly against. Elena, who remains single, said she hasn’t Acklom failed to mention that his reluctance been put off men by Acklom. might have had something to do with the “If anything I trust my gut more because I was €250,000 property scam he was then masright about him, I just hope no one else falls for terminding in Murcia, tricking two brothers into it.” And she joked: “I just wish now I had asked paying him for buildings he didn’t own. A scam him to dance for me since he also claimed he for which he would later spend three years in had been trained in classical ballet from the age prison. of three. Now that would have been funny.” Elena, whose uncle worked in anti-terrorism and

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23rd - December 6th 2016 PNovember olitics

Make Spain great again PRO-FRANCO fascists have taken to the streets in Spain to salute the dictator on the 41st anniversary of his death. Some 200 people gathered in Madrid’s Plaza Oriente as they raised their right arms and sang the fascist Cara al Sol anthem. Organised by far-right groups, protesters were seen holding placards with phrases

Mayor toppled POLITICIANS have ousted Manilva’s mayor after a vote of no confidence. Diego Jimenez of PSOE has been replaced by Mario Jimenez of Compromiso Manilva after gaining a mandate from politicians. Mario criticised his rival’s actions over the last 17 months, claiming that the former mayor had abandoned street cleaning and failed to develop any new infrastructure projects.

FIRST MEET: Boris and Dastis

New priorities JOSE MARGALLO has said the idea of Gibraltar gaining special status with the EU is ‘absurd’. The former Spanish foreign secretary made the remarks after it became clear his replacement, Alfonso Dastis, would not be making the issue a priority. Margallo said: “Nothing would be more absurd than if Gibraltar achieved a special status within the EU while the UK remained outside of it.” His controversial comments came after, Dastis had met with his British counterpart Boris Johnson. But unlike Margallo - who raised the issue in his first meeting with the UK foreign secretary - Dastis failed to bring up the Rock’s future or the joint sovereignty issue. The pair met for the first time during an EU gathering of foreign ministers in Brussels. “They met and they had a discussion on a number of issues, but Gibraltar was not raised,” a Foreign Office spokesman confirmed. Dastis’s omission of the topic is thought to suggest that Spain’s new government is standing down on the Gibraltar question, or at least making it less of a priority.

like ‘Make Spain Great Again’ – a play on Donald Trump’s campaign slogan. A gay protester, Lagarder Danciu, who held up a sign ‘Franco - asesino - Franco - killer!’ was violently assaulted by a group of fascists, who kicked him repeatedly and hit him around the head until police intervened.

Corruption under spotlight Estepona mayor goes on trial THE sleaze trial of an exmayor is set to begin next week. Ex-leader of Estepona town hall Antonio Barrientos will give evidence on December 1 over alleged crimes including money laundering, embezzlement and bribery while he was in power. Socialist Barrientos resigned his post before spending six months in prison in 2008 and wants to use the hearing to clear his name. Both Barrientos and various other officials were accused of illegally obtaining

funds from developers and businesses, in the Astapa investigation, launched in 2007. The wrongdoings were committed in the early and mid 2000s. Barrientos will be questioned alongside José Flores and other public officials in what the judge has described as the ‘final part’ of proceedings. Barrientos insisted, this week: "After around 10 years since the operation started, I am looking forward to explaining everything to the judge."

Happy anniversary The Experience Group has followed client needs over the last 46 years, and at all times place its clients’ needs and services at the forefront of all activities. We wish the Olive Press congratulations on their 10th anniversary. The next 36 years will not get easier. Alan James, Experience Group boss

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ON TRIAL: Jose Alba AN ex-mayor who allegedly falsely sold land is in the dock. José Manuel Martín Alba, former PSOE party Alcaucín chief has been accused of knowing and giving consent to the buildi n g of illegal homes in Axar-

Fundraisers danced the night away at a charity ball. Members of the Nerja Royal British Legion boosted their coffers at the glittering event at the Caves Restaurant. They enjoyed a three course meal before a live band got everyone up and dancing.

‘Bent’ mayor in dock By Chloe Glover

quia by prosecutors at Malaga’s Ciudad de Justicia. Martín and his two daughters are three of 48 people who have been charged with crimes includ-

Happy anniversary

Just a note to say that on your 10th Anniversary , The British Chamber of Commerce in Spain sends you it's heartiest congratulations , for providing the local Community with many years of high quality professional journalism , and our best wishes for the future

Derek A Langley, Regional Vice-President Andalucia for British Chamber of Commerce in Spain

ing embezzlement, falsehood, bribery, money laundering and falsifying official documents as part of the Arcos Case. Back in 2009 police found sales documents and €130,000 stashed under the bed of Martín, who is known as the flamenco mayor after attempting a new career as a singer. If found guilty, he may face four years behind bars. Prosecutors said homes were built on rural land not allowed to be developed “with the knowledge and consent of the mayor.” His two daughters are already serving sentences of at least six months after coming to out of court agreements.

Search for a cure A TORROX scientist is leading a project to find a cure for HIV. Oscar Jurado Ruiz’s €150,000 study hopes to genetically manipulate the virus so that it is no longer a pathogen, which would make it easier to suppress in an individual. The goal is to make the virus unable to replicate itself and develop into AIDS. Ruiz has said he is confident his project has a ‘high chance’ of eradicating the disease, and believes treatment could be available in four to five years. The project will be carried out jointly with the Department of Infectious Diseases at the Ramón y Cajal University Hospital and the Molecular Virology Service of the National Center of Microbiology of the Carlos IIIISCIII Health Institute.

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www.theolivepress.es G ibraltar

Racer jailed A RECKLESS racer has been jailed after leaving his passenger in a coma following a 120km per hour crash. The 26-year-old man was given a two-year sentence for dangerous driving and GBH after crashing on Devil’s Tower Road during an illegal road race. He lost control of his car, in 2014, after racing at speeds of up to 120km per hour and was allegedly racing another car which sped off following the crash.

NEWS IN BRIEF

Not happy UNITE the Union has called an emergency meeting today on the controversial proposed new ‘operating model’ at the Ministry of Defence. The union believes the MoD has not conducted a meaningful consultation on the issue.

Hearing aid THE Gibraltar Hearing Impaired Tinnitus Association has installed £4,000 worth of hearing assistance equipment in St Theresa’s Church.

Weaning off THE Junta has presented a report to the Spanish Foreign Ministry outlining how to stimulate the region’s economy and make it less reliant on the Rock post-Brexit.

Outspoken DEPUTY Chief Minister Dr Joseph Garcia attended Brussels for two days of Brexit meetings. He went to ensure that Gibraltar’s point of view continues to be heard by EU decision makers.

Happy anniversary I congratulate the Olive Press on a first decade in print. I commend its journalists for their interest in Gibraltar and for the work they do. Here's to another ten years! Fabian Picardo, Gibraltar Chief Minister

You’re making it up! Spaniard who claims Picardo ordered his torture actually thanked police at court case By Laurence Dollimore and Joe Duggan

A FAR-RIGHT leader who claims he was tortured by authorities in Gibraltar actually THANKED the police at a Magistrates Court hearing this summer, it can be revealed. However, Nacho Minguez Martinez - the leader of political party Vox - now claims he was tortured on the Rock under the direct orders of chief minister Fabian Picardo. But at a hearing in June, that the Olive Press covered, Minguez praised the RGP for its ‘excellent treatment’ after he was arrested for unfurling a huge Spanish flag on the Rock. Spain’s Supreme Court has been probing accusations by the politician, 53, that he was subject to ‘torture and crimes against moral integrity’ following his arrest for the provocative stunt. After attracting global media attention, Minguez and several other Vox activists were cuffed on June 20 before being charged with ‘conduct likely to cause a breach of the peace.’ But according to Minguez, police kept him for more than seven hours, frisked him in a ‘disproportionate manner’, stopped him from telling anyone where he was and denied him a lawyer and food. His lawyer, Fernando Sanchez, says he was prevented from meeting Minguez ahead of a

TORTURE CLAIMS: Mingues (top) and controversial flag court appearance and that he was detained after taking pictures of the courtroom. In the complaint that has been filed in Spain, it is alleged that police holding Sanchez told him he was being treated in such a manner for ‘political reasons’ and ‘under direct orders from the chief minister.’ An official investigation has been launched after the complaint was accepted by the National Court in Madrid, while British authorities have been asked to send copies of all police and judicial paperwork related to the arrests. Picardo has since described the proceedings as ‘frivolous and vexatious’ and a ‘clear abuse of process.’ He added that the case was a slur on the police and prison service in Gibraltar. “I fully respect the Spanish courts and legal system and will therefore not lose a moment’s sleep over this case,” he said. The High Court also requested Spain quickly determined whether Picardo was protected by diplomatic immunity.

Punched to his grave!

A ROYAL Gibraltar Regiment soldier was murdered by a boxer who claimed to be the ‘hardest man in town’, a court has heard. Private Matthew Boyd, 20, was punched to death on a night out in Wales by amateur boxer Jake Vallely before his body was dumped in the road, prosecutors told Cardiff Crown Court. While Vallely admits to punching Boyd he is pleading ‘not guilty’ to murder. His friend Aaeron Evans, 23, is also on trial for manslaughter. Vallely, 24, allegedly launched the attack outside a bar near to the Brecon military barracks. Just an hour before the attack, Vallely allegedly proclaimed that he was the ‘hardest man in town’ before being kicked out of a bar for ripping a cocktail menu with his teeth. “That was how he described himself an hour or so before the attack that killed Mr Boyd,” said Prosecutor Christopher Quinlan. He added: “Together with his friend, Aaeron, he

chased and then assaulted Mr Boyd. “Mr Vallely then dragged and dumped his body and ran off. “He ran back to the bar where he continued his night with his friend Mr Evans.” Boyd arrived at the Brecon barracks for a rest in May, following a tour to Northern Ireland. Vallely’s ‘sustained assault’ was captured on CCTV, which shows the boxer driving Boyd into the ground before punching him repeatedly. “You could see Mr Vallely’s right arm moving like a piston up and down as he punched him,” Quinlan said. “It was sustained, repeated and unlawful violence delivered with intent to cause really serious harm.” In a text message to a friend the next day, Vallely wrote: “I just ragged him on the floor a bit. Nothing serious. Wasn’t even a beating like.” A military funeral procession took place in Gibraltar in June with six fellow RGR soldiers carrying Boyd’s coffin into Holy Trinity for the ceremony. The trial is expected to last three weeks.

November 23rd - December 6th 2016

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Sun, sand and sewage

National park decision close

November 23rd - December 6th 2016

Spain told to clean up its act By Chloe Glover

A CAMPAIGNER behind the bid to have a Costa del Sol mountain crowned a national park is "hopeful" of success . Maribel Marin revealed that the Junta de Andalucia is currently considering a new proposal to give Estepona'sSierra Bermeja the status in conjunction with Ronda's Sierra de las Nieves. Maribel of Ecologistas en Acción said a decision could be made this year. The joint bid, has received unaminous backing from the Mancomunidad de Muncipios Costa del Sol . The Estepona mountain is very biodiverse and is the only place in the world where pinsapo (fir) trees grow on red peridotita rocks.

THE EU Commission wants the government to pay €46.5m for failing to properly process its sewage, which could cause 'serious risks to human health and the environment' in 17 communities. Nine of these are in Andalucia, making it the worst affected region in the country. The southern towns, all of which have more than 15,000 residents, include Estepona, Marbella (San Pedro) and Nerja alongside Coín, Alhaurin el Grande, Barbate, Tarifa, Matalascañas and Isla Cristina. News of the fine came as the commission revealed it was taking the country to the EU Court of Justice for the sec-

GROSS: Government under fire for sewage failure ond time over the issue, five years after first condemning it for failures in 37 communi-

ties. It also wants the court to impose a massive daily fine of €171,217.20 if Spain does not cough up by the time it reaches a ruling. down to the anticipated 2017 SnowAn EU wide diboard and Freestyle Ski Championrective was imships, which will take over the reposed in 2000 to sort’s slopes from March 7 to 19. “prevent serious Snow breaks, snow guns and halfrisks to human pipe competition lights have also health and the been installed in the resort. environment.”

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21/11/2016 08:44:07

LE T T E R S

www.theolivepress.es

Parking problems I HAVE received a parking ticket in Elviria, near Marbella and I am outraged. There are absolutely no road markings or signs prohibiting parking. I do want to obey the laws but find it very difficult without clear guidelines. I have sent photos over to my local Trafico but by the time they answer the fine will have doubled. It seems like a ludicrous system to me. Norma Holme, Marbella

Bleak forecast WHO will cut out the cancer? The Olive Press asked in its opinion section last issue. Your editorial board deserves an answer and that answer is NOBODY! We are all on board the rollercoaster of shame on its way to disaster, ashen faced and screaming Brexit. Then add in the never ending political farce, the clamour for independence from Catalunya and the Basque region who will leave at the first opportunity. Gibraltar must consider its predicament and may seek independence from Britain and then deal with whatever is left of the Spanish state as best they can. Forty years of freedom, democracy, greed and theft on an industrial scale have brought this country to its knees and this story will not have a happy ending . Finally I love my life here and the warmth of the people but it breaks my heart to observe the antics of the so-called elected representatives. Viva España! Sean Moffett, Manilva

November 23rd - December 6th 2016

A load of old Trump Speaking up!

55 crosses were made by

Barcelona against Málaga (inc. corners) in last weekend’s match, more than in any other La Liga game since 2005/06

TRUMP’S election is good news for the USA and also for Brexit supporters. With Trump as president, the silent majority have spoken as they did in the UK. The liberal left ‘whiners’ will never be satisfied, but with Trump, Brexit and even Mariano Rajoy taking office, the lefties need to get a grip and realise they are in a minority. I look forward to seeing how Trump works with the UK, and Europe in the coming years. Howard Davis, Coin

Silver lining

68%

of Spaniards would vote to remain in the EU if they had a referendum, according to a survey by the Bertelsmann Foundation.

124

Trojan horse

THROUGHOUT his campaign, Donald Trump’s message was ‘let’s make America great again’. And perhaps he will. The Brexit message on the other hand was ‘let us go full stupid and abandon everything and see where it takes us’. I can see why political commentators are comparing the two, however, to my mind they are very different entities. At least with Trump, Americans can vote him out again in four years time.

TRUMP got in as a populist, but not a Republican populist. As a pragmatic deal-maker and social liberal he isn’t likely to tolerate Tea Party southern rednecks in the House and Senate. And as a grandiose narcissist he will be more focussed on his historical legacy and reputation. Trump’s populist campaign that appealed to marginalized, mostly white working class high school educated Americans, may have got him into office using populist Trojan horse. Some speculate that that horse will be dismantled a few months after he is in office. The Campaign Horse’s simplistic rhetoric, while repugnant to many, appeal to disenfranchised provincial people across America.

Lenox Napier, Almeria

Chas Davies, La Linea

Inspired! THE story of Jon Bonfiglio is inspiring to all Gibraltarians (Indiana Jones of Gib, issue 252). How

he and his team survived on a few nuts each every day is beyond me. His story of survival should be taught in all schools in Gibraltar to inspire future generations to go out into the world and do what

they want. I would love to hear more stories about his travels. Claire Hull, Gibraltar

Has anything peeked your interest in this week’s Olive Press? Have your say on the matter by emailing letters@theolivepress.es or alternatively message us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/OlivePressNewspaper or Twitter @olivepress

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November 23rd - December 6th 2016

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THE Game of Thrones cast dug a little deeper during filming in Sevilla to treat their loyal fans to pizza. Some 50 followers of the blockbuster series had staked out the Download stars’ hotel andnow filmour app and ing locations, which included begin enjoying the best SpanishNEW:Theatre on London’s Southbank Las Atarazanas Royal Dockyards and the news onRoman the go. ruins of Italica. To thank their fans for not interrupting filming, the actors delivered 10 boxes of pizza to the crowd waiting outside their hotel, on the principal that zero out-takes merit a hearty take-out. Nathalie Emmanuel, who The Olive Press plays freed slave interpreter Missandei, posted a picture on her TOP Twitter with foraccount news in Spain! the caption: “We’ve had some dedicated fans outside our hotel in Sevilla every day! It was fun meeting some of you last night! Hope you enjoyed the LONDON’S first dedicated Spanish theatre has opened on the banks of the Thames, pizza!” within shouting distance of The Globe, The Vic and Union theatres. The new Cervantes Theatre, based at Old Union Arches in Southwark, proves that all the world’s a stage, just as Shakespeare to deck out its interior. wrote. The long-cherished dream of ac- The achievement follows Juan’s establishclaimed Spanish actor-turned-theatre-di- ment of The Spanish Theatre Company in rector Jorge de Juan, he hopes it will open 2013, London’s first theatre company enthe eyes of English audiences to the delights tirely dedicated to promoting Spanish and of Latin drama. Latin American arts. The €250,000, 90-seater venue has been “We didn’t have official help from the minpart financed by Spanish literary founda- istry of culture,” said Juan. tion SGAE and Network Rail. “At various times we were at the point of Their money helped purchase authentic throwing in the towel. Spanish furnishings, which have been used “But I was committed to making it this year TREAT: Pizza posse

uengirola, November 25- December 14 Get into

the festive spirit when its Christmas market opens this week. Cabins selling gifts and food will open on November 25 from 10.30am to 2.30pm and again from 5 to 9pm.

tajate, November 26 Have a first

Cervantes joins Shakespeare on the Southbank Curtain rises on new era of Spanish theatre in London

A BOOK authored by a Costa expat imagining a world without money has just hit the bookshelves. Fuengirola-based Colin R. Turner’s Into The Open Economy sets out proposals for an economy founded on sharing. With it, the Dublin-born writer, musician and social activist claims that most of today’s social, economic and environmental prob-

lems could be solved. Turner’s 92 page book points out that a moneyless world would help people become less self-centred as they would act for mutual benefit. The release follows his debut novel, The Second Dawn Of Man, which describes events leading up to a money-free world. Into The Open Economy is available on Amazon from €2.99.

ebrate oriental culture at the town’s third Japanese Festival. It will take place at the Caseta Municipal.

ranada, December 2 to 11 A Cir-

cus of Horrors promises a bold and provocative evening. The Cabaret Maldito will take place at the Explanada Junto al Hipercor. Tickets from €21.50.

for the 400th anniversary of Cervantes and Shakespeare and here we are.” Cervantes Theatre’s opening was marked by a two-date production of Federico Garcia Lorca’s Blood Wedding. It was performed once each in English and Spanish by 34 talented Spanish and Hispanic actors, who may have thought they would never find a home on the Thames. Juan, who studied at the British Theatre Association before making a name for himself, said: “It has revealed to me the lack of knowledge of our theatre but the growing interest there is in it.” Work is already underway for next year’s productions, which will include Pedro Calderón’s Life is a Dream.

Pompi-doh EXPECTED visitor numbers to Malaga’s Pompidou Centre have been massively overestimated. According to the city’s Culture Councillor, Gemma del Corral, data suggests 28% fewer people will have visited the landmark attraction by the end of this year than initially hoped for. The city now expects only 180,000 to visit, 70,000 less than the 250,000 touted for the year by officials ahead of its opening in March 2015. Numbers for Malaga’s Russian Art Museum, also opened in 2015, were similarly down on predictions.

Eddie’s ready EDDIE IZZARD is coming to Spain and has vowed to perform most of his comedy set in Spanish. The British comedian has said he will add more and more Spanish into his set throughout his run in Madrid and Barcelona next month, with the aim of having an ‘almost Spanish’ set by Christmas. It will be the third additional language the 54-year old has performed in after mastering his act in French and German. Izzard’s comedy routines are famed for their rambling, stream-ofconsciousness style, as well for his casual cross-dressing. He will perform in several locations in Barcelona and Madrid in December. Visit www.eddieizzard.com for more info.

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Marbella 952 863 332 Avda. Ricardo Soriano 12 Fuengirola 952 467 837 Avda. Ramón y Cajal 6 Cannot be used with other offers. Second pair from the same price range or below and to the same prescription. 1.5 scratch-resistant single vision lenses included in the offer. You can pay an extra 79€ and get both pairs with standard varifocals lenses or 69€ for standard bi-focal lenses. Other lenses and Extra Options available at an additional charge on both pairs. Offer does not include non-prescription sunglasses. Ends 4 December 2016. Eye test usually 15€. ©2016 Specsavers. All rights reserved.

OLIVE PRESS – 105mm x 256mm – Colour

23 November

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November 23rd - December 6th 2016 November 23rd - December 6th 2016

The big switch on begins COSTA del Sol resorts are set to sparkle as Christmas goes up in lights. Residents of Marbella, San Pedro and Estepona will come together to celebrate the occasions next week, while Malaga’s Calle Larios remains the region’s must-see light show. The first of the switch-ons marking the countdown to the festive season will illuminate San Pedro on November 24 at 6.30pm. Marbella will trip the light fantastic just one hour later at 7.30pm on Avenida Nabeul, where the mayor will push the

Spain’s dark past

SUCCESS: For Nicole (middle)

TV hallmark

and the vandalised stone

SHAME: Damaged dolmen

MARBELLA NOW TV has celebrated its 100th episode. The expat talk show, sponsored by Linea Directa, sees presenter Nicole King interview fascinating characters and businesses across Marbella. Guests, friends and fans of the show enjoyed drinks and canapes at Joe’s Bar in the Puente Romano resort. “It’s been a lot of hard work but so much fun and I’m very proud of what we have achieved,” Nicole told the Olive Press. “Tonight is a celebration but also a chance to say thanks to everyone who has helped with the show, so thank you!”

Police hunt Potterinspired graffitist for defacing historic dolmen A HARRY Potter fan is on Spain’s wanted list for defacing a 2,000-year-old dolmen tomb. Police are searching for the acolyte wizard after a ‘Deathly Hallows’ symbol appeared on the La Casa dos Mouros dolmen in Vigo, Galicia. Alongside the mark, was the word ‘always’ as spoken by Alan Rickman’s character Severus Snape in the Potter series. Despite the dolmen being a protected site, Mayor Oscar Dominguez is seemingly not so concerned about the graffiti.

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“Maybe JK Rowling dropped by to promote her latest spin-off,” he joked, referring to the movie Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, starring Eddie Redmayne, which premiered earlier this month. “Either way, it is clear that the graffiti was carried out by an amateur in the world of magic.” The dolmen of La Casa dos Mouros is one

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button. But the festivities will begin in the town earlier in the evening, starting with a children’s party at 5pm in the Parque de la Alameda, followed by a parade via the main streets to the Avda Nabeul switch-on. Several nativity scenes will also take centre stage during the festive period, with the quirkiest being made out of Playmobil. It will go on show in la Plaza de la Iglesia de Marbella, along with a Santa’s grotto and another nativity scene in La Alameda. Estepona lights up on November 25 at 7pm on the European Union roundabout.

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of the main tourist attractions of Vigo, and the best-preserved megalithic construction in the area. The Deathly Hallows motif, from the seventh Potter novel, symbolises three brothers’ desire of death: a way to escape from death; a stone to raise the dead and the most powerful wand of all, an elder wand.

SPAIN’S turbulent history comes under the microscope in a new ebook. The Reign in Spain was written by William Kristjan Arnold to answer the repeated questions of friends and family about its modern history. Arnold tackles the massive subjects of civil war, multiple regime changes and the role of the monarchy. Included is an explanation of how the Bourbon dynasty survived republics, Franco’s dictatorship, assassinations and royalist plots. It is available on Amazon’s eBook Store for €4.64.

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November 23rd - December 6th 2016 November 23rd - December 6th 2016

17 17

If you thought Malaga’s Caminito del Rey was exciting, try the Garganta Verde! Rob Horgan descends into the mouth of one of Andalucia’s best-kept secrets

STUNNING: Rob Horgan looks over Garganta Verde

The Walk (Time approx. 2 hrs 30 mins) The walk starts from the car park just past KM12 on the Zahara to Grazalema road. Leaving the car park, the path is largely flat and gentle and remains that way until you reach the griffon vulture colony. From here choughs, blue rock thrush, Sardinian warblers, crag martins and the occasional short-toed eagle can be spotted. Winding down a steep but welldefined path, steps have been put in place with hand-railings

CAPTION:

in a few particularly steep areas. Once you reach the bottom, the floor is made up of huge boulders gradually diminishing in size as you walk northwards towards the impressive cave system. After taking in the cave it is back the way you came. This can be particularly gruelling on weary legs and it is advisable not to do so in midday summer heat.

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EWARE - you are about to enter Andalucia’s ‘Green throat’ and it’s not a walk for beginners. If the name doesn’t put you off, the sign at the start of the Garganta Verde trek is ominous warning enough. It tells me only 10 people are allowed to walk the path daily and you need a permit from the park office in El Bosque, in advance. I already have my permit. Now I’m going to find out what lies beyond the mouth of this spectacular limestone canyon, concealed in the rock face 2.3km beyond the mountain village of Zahara de la Sierra. And within just minutes of setting off it is hard to believe that you are anywhere near civilisation. Not another soul is in sight, the silence broken only by the buzz of

bees and insects. The views across the cliff face, where clusters of gravity-defying trees cling on to either side of the plunging gorge, must rate among the wonders of the world. And the deeper you go into the canyon the better it gets. The scent of rosemary and other wild herbs intensifies in the shade as the rocky walls close in and an earthy dampness fills the air. Griffon vultures with a wingspan of up to three metres circle above while a series of steps lead the 400-metre way down to the depths of the ravine. It is here on the canyon floor, filled knee-high with ice-cold running water in the winter that the true spectacle awaits. A brief scramble over the boulder-laden floor leads to La Ermita, a collapsed system of caves tinted pink and orange, ornamented with eroded stalactites and stalagmites. For a moment, it feels like I’ve stumbled onto the set of a Hollywood blockbuster themed on the planet Mars. The roof of the cave plays host to rock doves, and bats disturbed from their daytime snooze can be seen making short tentative flights throughout the day. It is possible to continue on through the gorge and exit via Zahara but that’s for experts and requires climbing gear. Most people are content to head back the way they came - but not before soaking up the beauty of the Garganta Verde.

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19 November 23rd -survive, December 2016 even6th in the recession Voted best expat paper in Spain June 26 - July 9 2014

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Prime Minister 233 www.theolivepress.es a British Vol. 10 Issue emperor, drive to attract a Roman its laurels in its Manilva is... that enraptured resting on The town star is not Duggan discovers, and a ﬂamencoIndeed as Joe new admirers.

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(inset) baths and Roman while (left) del Sol with fishermen’s the Costa fishing village resort on the beach. along a small is the last huddled literally on is the Sierra Manilva Isla and ????????? of shacks of buildings motorway between THE LINE: nestled and the Straits de la This jumblestrip of the A7community. END OF star Cameron cro climate mix of locals mountains a narrowa thriving expat flag flutthe smelly Bermeja there is a great are excellent ﬂamenco home to the European Union came for legend the close-knit Gibraltar, of and there coastline, inflamencotranquilIn fact, the entrance to ULIUS Caesar symbol African springs, and tourists at a fitting with Mothe north sulphur de la Isla for the come for that tering of 6,000 is views of appeal, Spanish you feel Camaron tourists today and physi- town multinational the time cluding Ceuta. emblematic German out and Sabi’s most of ity, while English, blend of nationalities “In fact, almost reach and two convaried beaches,vibe. instant its rich and cosmopolitan stand- roccans,the easy here. you could three countries Sabihave the cousamong harmony you are marina and may not underline cally touch costa in while in from anywhere de living signs in English Brand Manilva of its brasher wine – now tinents and San Luis British feel by recognition its locally-grown of call is that keeps Street undeniably Lee’s sports bar ing.” star boost first port nillas’ – the ins but like a Michelin as Ricky Manilva’s a tourist resort Page 18 Berasateguiage. bars such in popularity. being given Turn to Sabinillas, with known by chef Martin and growing few Basque Manilva,” growing it is affectionately nitely improving the past quite like Dean town is deﬁ ‘Sabi’, as boomed over beginnings as nowhere “There isproud expat councillor who has humble locals, has from its explains a businessman decades 18 years.unique miTyler Shelton, town for lived in the a fantastic and “We share

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Is Spain still as cruel and brutal to animals as the world has come to expect, or...

success ‘Lookalike’ freed at last!

A DUTCHMAN wrongly jailed for a rape on the Costa del Sol has been freed after 12 years in a Spanish prison. Romano van der Dussen (above, left) was put behind bars after being found guilty of three rapes in Fuengirola. It comes after convicted UK killer Mark Dixie (right) confessed to one of the rapes in July last year and forensic tests later linked him to another attack. Van der Dussen was convicted because he ‘looked like’ rapist Dixie. No DNA evidence was presented at the time but advances in technology have been able to clear Van der Dussen’s name. The case is uncannily similar to the plot of US documentary Making a Murderer which sees Stephen Avery’s wrongful conviction for rape for which he served 18 years, overturned.

Are times a-changing?

A ess

OGS dragged behind cars, donkeys crushed to death, bulls driven into the sea... for a decade the Olive Press has reported on animal cruelty in Spain. Easily the most fiercely debated issue we have confronted, the Spanish are often accused of being stuck in the Dark Ages when it comes to animal rights. It is the country, after all, where throwing a turkey out of a church tower is not a crime but an integral part of a festival and where spearing a bull on horseback is a sign of bravery, not brutality. However, one result that slipped under the radar last year was the remarkable 220,000 votes that little-known political party PACMA received during the general elections. A party set up to lobby for animal rights, is this a clear sign that things are changing? “Despite all these negatives, we believe there is an encouraging future for animals in Spain,” its president told the Olive Press this week. With support for bullfighting dropping each year and with increasing numbers of Spaniards coming out to denounce cruelty, the Olive Press decided to find out: Is the tide finally turning?

Ten years after it all started, the Olive Press is stronger than ever

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28_olive_

28/08/14

15:02

r p e v i l o

LOCKED UP: Dogs transported

EVIL: Dog dragged behind car in Sevilla, while (above) a turkey in Jaen and a bull in Torre de la Vega

SPANISH health officials have warned there will be 200 to 250 cases of the Zika virus this year after a second pregnant woman was diagnosed. There are now 23 cases of the virus in Spain, which many experts believe may cause head-shrinking in babies. All of those affected had travelled to areas where the virus has been spreading, transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, most commonly found in North and South America.

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Vol. 8 Issue 179

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January 22 - February 5 2014

Edition

The Property Queen fights back - Page 19

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The final Countdown

the olive

HORROR: Terrible THE countdown to the ‘Big scenes at official Switch Off’ has finally begun. animal centre The clock is now ticking on free-to-air British television in southern Spain after a much-publicised satellite finally started moving into place. Rumours emerged a couple of days ago that it was heading west towards its destination, and have since been confirmed by those in the know. At its current velocity the satellite would arrive at its des- A SPONTANEOUS protest tination by the end of month. formed The switch off could happen shelter outside an animal this weekend after any time after that. horrific scenes of cruelty were broadcast by activists in Andalucia. Woe The satellite has been a hot A petition has now been set topic of conversation around up to demand action against Andalucia since news of its those responsible for leaving hundreds of dogs in pitiful launch broke last year. It has been the most com- conditions at the official ‘permented post on the Olive rera’ shelter in Mairena del Press website after it emerged Aljarafe, near Sevilla. that the BBC, and possibly During a short YouTube video ITV, will transmit via the new some animals are seen close to death, next to the dead satellite. Expats have taken to the Ol- bodies of other dogs. ive Press site in their droves Meanwhile faeces is strewn searching for a solution to across the floor and scant food is scattered alongside it. their forthcoming woe. SAVED: A lucky Galgo Most are keen to establish The pens, each containing dozens of dogs, had clearly Some of the animals had open not been cleaned for days, if wounds, Turn to page 3 while there were not weeks. signs of malnutrition and serious illness. Dozens of angry protesters gathered outside the Protectora de Animales - described by activists as ‘the Spanish Auschwitz for animals’ - on Saturday afternoon demanding action. Later that night activists

EXCLUSIVE press

Horse cruelty woman found guilty of starving 16 thoroughbreds sees more horses die in Spain

Turn to Page 6

Amy probe demand

New equine horror - Page 2

SHAMEFUL: Wrapped

Turn to Page 2

in a tarpaulin held

down by rocks is body

of a foal, while (top

left) lies a carcass

All that glitters is not Goldman - Page 6

them for defamation, as he did with a former member of staff who filmed alleged mistreatment last year. Last night, a website eldiario. es reported that he was well connected with links to both the police, politicians and Sebroke into the shelter, which villa’s ruling classes. is funded by an estimated 11 He is also said to have close nearby towns, and set around links with Sevilla’s bullring. Last night, however he agreed 200 dogs free. The centre, which has been to allow local charities and denounced on ‘numerous’ oc- activists to find homes for the EXCLUSIVE casions by local animal rights hundreds of dogs in the shelgroups, is run by a business- ter. A tribute to my man - and reportedly a vet - It is said to receive up to 250 Pedro Luis Fernández Castil- dogs a month, many of them mate Michael lo, who has a private kennels hunting dogs, with the numbers increasing as the recesJacobs next door. According to sources, the sion has deepened. By his best friend Chris Stewart President is paid an estimated One Olive Press reader Rena My dear friend €100,000 or more each year Turn to page 2 Michael - Page 16 by the different town halls for his ‘animal sanctuary’. In 2012, Bormujos and Mairena actually withdrew their arrangement with the pound, after a string of denuncias against it for mistreatment. However the president sued

EXCLUSIVE By Jon Clarke

Available from many Olive Press outlets, newsagents, book shops and hotels throughout the region.

Don’t let the flies spoil your summer!

INHUMANE: Toro Jublio festival

EXCLUSIVE The life and times of a perennial fraudster

Investigation into the wicked ways of Nigel Goldman

Massive outcry after horrific scenes of animal cruelty filmed at the ‘Auschwitz for animals’

Friend’s mother insisted she was “in danger”

been AN investigation has sent demanded over a fax conto the Irish authorities Amy cerning the welfare ofbefore Fitzpatrick, two years she went missing.

EXCLUSIVE

Bouncing back after the tsunami

Interview with Marbella property tsar Kristina Zsekely

July 09 - 23 2009

Vol. 3 Issue 62, Western

Exclusive by Paul Whitelock

been TWO foreigners have brutally attacked in Ronda Spanby a gang of drunken ish youths. atIn a case similar to theMaltack on dad Stephen to his lon, who was thrown in death from a balcony a 50Competa last month, and a year-old German man from Finn, 56, were bottled the behind and kicked to ground. hapThe unprovoked attack enpened as the two men in the tered the Bar El Paso to buy San Francisco barrio hours cigarettes in the early of Sunday June 14. Amid chants of “Foreigners, go home! Leave our country! here!” You are not welcome with they hit the two men rebottles and kicked them

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held rd has an e-m at landlo AN exp cedented on t who a tenan years. an unpre against protest d rent for twoLomas pai n’t vid has Da , took (left), 66streets to the ,000 over €10d rent in unpai me in at the hoos. Campillld by Followe r chilhis fou aged dren six between - Loand 12 rched mas ma room ee-bed the thrtown hall to from the to property justice’. ugh, ‘demandfrom Middlesbro Lomas, Page 2

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uption anti-corr ucia, MASSIVEe swept Andald Exraids hav ry Islands an in at the Canara, resulting tremadu arrests. and least 30 er of politicians were A numb n hall staff other tow se arrested. the among tho came onrcedes s est The arrof Judge Me estin inv orders o has bee at the Alaya, wh ERE scandal gating the Page 4

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happily take in order to keep quiet. In fact, the Olive Press is the only English-language paper in Andalucia, perhaps Spain, prepared to ask awkward questions of politicians and businessmen, investigate scams and fight for justice. And that is why British, Irish, Dutch, American and German (to name a few) media outlets around the world British buyers are second Olive Pressdown but the coast will bounce bac k, insist leading pro Property Observatory repeatedly commission us for work pert - Inside Property mag azine, from Pag and investigation… so keep your the good life noses clean, dear readers! Voted H EA L BEST And with Brexit, three general elecESTEPONA POR expat tions in Spain, not to mention tenpaper in sions with Gibraltar, all during 2016, Spa in FRE the Olive Press has taken an active E role in voicing expats’ political concerns and fears. In the last year alone we have spoken to world leaders, grilled Spain’s Caught liv e foreign minister and interrogated EXPAT NOTIC British MPs. E The Olive Press pide a los We are your only true voice in Andaespañoles, en nombre de los lucia. The only real, community, cambritánicos, que apoyen la petición 80 years on para poder paigning newspaper around. Fiercepermanecer en España ly anti-racist, anti-homophobic and 24 pro-expat and animal rights. hours at San and culWe love Spain, its food min here to ture and we are very Fer much NEE stay. D Roll on the next 10 years! Now in Andalucía !

in Spain - we continually break new ground, making our rivals slink back and sulk. Over the decade we have tracked down three of the UK’s most wanted fugitives, exposed crooked conmen, animal abusers, fraudsters and bent lawyers and estate agents. We have also frequently shone a spotlight on the insidious corruption that has became so ingrained in Andalucian life, not scared to take on the town halls and the Junta, despite missing out on the lucrative institutional advertising that our rivals so

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He added: “I stupidly didn’t check how bad the weather was outside before going down in the lift. “As I got closer to the basement water started flowing erywhere and I couldn’tfrom evstop it. “Within a minute my chest and I wasit was up to Luckily, neighbourspanicking.” came to his rescue when Dawson’s partner Sylina heard his screams. However they were unable to lift the roof of the lift and it was only when he managed to rise by half a storey to get it by continually hitting the that he had a bit up button of breathing space. Police were soon on the scene and prized open the lift with a crowbar, pulling Dawson, from Derby, to safety.

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Up to his neck! A BRITISH expat from a flooded lift was pulled in a dramatic two-hour rescue effort. Bet365 worker Dan told the Olive Press Dawson ‘lucky to be alive’ after he feels he found himself up to his water while stuck neck in flood in a lift during Sunday’s storms. The nightmare happened Dawson, 46, attempted when to save his five-year-old Christmas presentsson Kaled’s from their basement in Duquesa. “It was absolutely horrific,” Dawson said. thought that was “I honestly going to be it for me.”

WROUGHT in two and owners tilting on its side, in the sible task the imposwreckage of one of sorting Costa del Sol’s of the through the wreckage. emblematic beachmost Many towns were debars clared a is a chilling reminder ‘disaster zone’ and left underwater of 48 hours of less rain which relent- with roads cut off claimed houses and two lives and left evacuated. thou- The heaviest sands more homeless. fell in Estepona,rainfall The worst flooding where for a 26-year-old 25 years saw a woman er literally carvenew riv- tragically perished in through the its way a basement brothel, middle while of Floria, in Manilva, an electrician also leaving the chiringuito drowned in La Linea. nilva Politicians a complete write rallied where and Casares ting up shop off in round, land, sea and a matter of minutes. for along of the weekend most King of Spain with the air rescue teams were With the toilet who ofresidents resignedand ripped fered out and the contents condolences, as deployed to help those their to homes, it stranded. the cost of the of its kitchen clear now, that the is only on the sand, thestrewn is estimated at tens up School was cancelled true extent of the storms of in all five ers have joined own- millions of euros. towns is the The worst Monday, while on beginning to be rethousands of desolated affected Tuesday on alised. home and business areas were Mijas, the big clear tepona, Cartama, Es- up continued. Ma- With businesses See When shut- ens openedthe heav- Page 6

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cias más de cerca. Queremos que los españoles entiendan esta situación que nos grave deja en el limbo y que impedir que siguiépodría viviendo aquí como ramos llevamos haciéndolo duran te años. Esta no es una insólita: el Reinopetición permite la posibi Unido lidad de obtener la doble nacion alidad tras cinco años de residencia. Curiosamen el Ministro Marga te llo conoce bien esta posibi lidad ya que su hijo, reside actualmente que Reino Unido, la ha en el itado recientemen solicte. Así que desde aquí pedimos, esperamos os e incluso suplicamos que áis a nosotros en esta os unAlgunos alcaldes causa. natarios ya se han y digunido a nuestra petici ón. Pero también necesitamo ayuda de todos vosotr s la Curiosamente los os. triados británicos expaeste llamamiento lanzan exactamente 80 años despu comienzo de la guerraés del española en la que civil de jóvenes voluntariosmiles británicos perdieron la ¿Por qué? Porque vida. España. Y nosotroscreían en también. Estamos convencido que nuestra aporta s de ción estructura de vuestr a la es muy importante.o país Queremos quedarnos queremos volver. aquí. No Para firmar la visitar change.org petición ‘Doble nacionaliday busca británicos con mas d para años de residencia de diez en España’

ÁS de 15.000 personas han firmado ya una petición que concedería a los dos británicos el expatriaa la doble nacion derecho alidad en España. Necesitamos vuestr para garantizar queo apoyo permita seguir trabaj se nos viviendo en vuestr ando y Hemos elegido o país. y hacer de Españvivir aquí hogar. Muchos dea nuestro tenemos negocios,nosotros formado una famili hemos Algunos tenemos a aquí. de nacionalidad parejas y, aunque quizá no española fección, hablamos a la pervuestro struido enlace idioma. s muy fuertes con que creemos ha sido España, a Creemos que contri el resultabuimos como Paul través de escritores do de una camp en gran parte al Preston, Gerald Breaña llena de mentiras xenófoba y de la economía desarrollo nan y Laurie Lee. en nuestra país. llevada a cabo pecialmente en local, es- Y por encima de todo, nos la costa. timos europ sen- Nosotros somos Históricamente hemo s con- pletamente eos y estamos com- mos en la línea los que estaopuestos al Brexit , que sufriremos de fuego y los las consecuenEst 1984

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Opinion Page 6 OLIVE With over two decades – 70mm x 40mm in business, Cambridge FRONTPRESS provides COVER secure20th from your UK bank, givin andJuly affordable ways to mak g you the peace of mind e overseas payments you need to effectively man For information connect age the purchase of your with our Costa Del Sol ofﬁc new property. e today ! Costadelsol@ cambridgefx.co.uk I +34 952 830176

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A nniversary

It’s thanks to you

ELL somehow we made it! After years of recession, dozens of threats and a series of lawsuits (all of them won) I am proud to be producing the tenth anniversary issue of the Olive Press. The approach of Brexit is nothing in comparison to the labyrinthine Kafka-esquestyle environment of running a business in Andalucia.

Scandal

Add to that rivals who promised the earth, yet failed to pay their printing bills, rent and staff, and yup, we’ve had one hell of a decade. When I launched the paper in Ronda in November 2006, I did so out of desperation for a genuine newspaper to support the huge expat population in Andalucia. After more than a decade working in Fleet Street, travelling the world investigating injustice, scandal and corruption, I couldn’t believe what I found on my very own doorstep. There were no real expat journalists investigating the issues that mattered to foreigners… and no newspapers giving them a voice. The millions of expats here were being insulted with nothing more than cheap papers which (badly) translated local articles. Whether to help expats fight injustice against fraudsters, corrupt town halls, or to highlight the numerous barbaric projects that threatened the environment, I wanted to offer a proper campaigning newspaper. Initially the establishment tried to discredit the paper and told us to shut

up. We were threatened with legal action and described by one jealous rival (guess who?), as a ‘biased, sensationalist rag full of propaganda’ and told to go home. Well we didn’t return - or shut up - and our stories began to get followed up in the UK and soon national Spanish press. Our small regional paper soon started to expand and, within a few years, could be found in every town inland and on the coast, where we have many thousands of loyal readers and advertisers. Growth continued with new websites, magazines and even a new edition last year in Gibraltar. The march continues and we were voted this year as Spain’s best English language paper in the TESCA awards, voted by you!

Quality

We continue to employ the best young English journalists in Spain and serve up quality features, food articles, while doing everything by the books and not cutting corners. Business is never easy in Andalucia and we continually put up with sniping - and even insidious lies from bitter rivals about our products - but we soldier on. All of this, of course, would not have been possible without our fabulous advertisers be they local or international. Thanks for your support. We look forward to growing in strength over the next decade, with you alongside us. We are your voice. For that, after all, is the point.

Jon Clarke, Publisher

From humble begins in a stables near Ronda, the Olive Press has grown yearon-year. This is how it all happened

November 23rd - December 6th 2016 November 23rd - December 6th 2016

2007

2006

Merges with Eastern edition: September

First issue: November

Website launch: January

How time flies

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Launch of All About Andalucia Property website: October

www.theolivepress.es

November 23rd - December 6th 2016

All about Issue 243

A All about S otogrande

www.theolivepress.es

the Rob Horgan takes a ride throughtowns of sunbleached ‘fresh and natural’ de la Luz the bright and breezy Costa

www.theoliv epress.es the Olive Press

www.theolivepress.es

November 11th - 25th 2015

ll about

osta de la Luz

17 17

August 7 - August 20 2014

errania de Ronda

October 26th

One-stop Into , parad ise deep h the Rmivoeurntain hig light July 6th - July 19th 2016

Vol. 10

Issue 251

- Novembe

r 8th 2016

19 19

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ess.es

October 26th

- November

8th 2016

HAPPY: Diners at Gigi’s and beach view from Sotogrande

Photos by Jon Clarke

Laurence Dollimore finds a down-to-earth welcome in the high society paradise

IT’S an absolute privilege to live here,” gled to end a sentence enthuses 29-year-old Georgina Taylor, than ‘dahling’, ‘sweetie’ in anything other “There’s a lot of wealth here but it’s not vul- “Sotogrande is where the wealthy come or ‘fabulous’. gar or ostentatious,” says Georgina a.k.a. to relax in peace, they’re welcoming me to her eponymous chir- You could have mistaken not here ‘Gigi’, who grew up here, at- off or be seen, it’s very low key,” to show distance inguito Gigi’s. “It’s such a beautiful, for being too posh to pass her continues lighthouse (also left) in the the tending school in nearby Mar- Gigi, whose father is from London. elegant paradise.” La Mangueta beach with Trafalgar “That’s time of day. But within Scratch beneath bella. TROTTING: Taking a ride along “My clients may be mil- why Soto is so special. We have it to the top, This is Sotogrande, Andalucia’s largest pri- onds of meeting her, 30 secmy personal ‘Everest’ and made a huge sigh preconmy back lionaires but they are happy to to stay under the radar and attractbeen able vately-owned residential super-estate. the traquil S the sun hitched a ride on the right ceptions melt away. And it’s lifting both arms into the air with an EU flag down walk around in flip flops and sort of money through targeted marketing.” And super it most certainly is. and beads of sweat cascaded the same with Sotogrande, an opulence and find eat chiringuito-style.” of relief and wishing I’d brought (Yup, I was that my Sometimes described as Spain’s ‘million- uber chic urbanisation Perhaps this helps explain why the resort’s my face, I began to think to plant in the sandy pinnacle. in the sand aire’s playground’, the enclave was pur- municipality of San a community that Gigi’s has been Soto’s hap- economy has consistently outperformed plan to conquer Europe’s tallest all. Remain). idea after pening chiringuito since it set its Costa neighbours. Throughout the views over pose-built for a wealthy cosmopolitan crowd The bluer-than-blueRoque. mountain wasn’t such a goodin my head and the last From the top of the mound, the crystal with the added bonuses of 24-hour security, stacked with gin palacemarina, welcomes visitors up awnings three years ago, crisis, while areas like Nerja saw property With Eye of the Tiger playing racing up the the dazzling white dunes fringing yachts but you won’t catch Gigi or her prices plummet by as much as well worth the are bay designer boutiques and quality restaurants and sailing boats Bolonia of the image of Sylvester StallonePhiladelphia’s waters 11%, in Soclear business partner Cristobal togrande they remained stable and My first introduction to this LA-like location the backdrop to a galore, is 72 stone steps outside even ineffort. up multi-coloured enclave boasting about their long list of regular (like almost evcame via a lifelong Soto resident who strug- of luxury apartments, roy- creased, some well into the double figures. Museum of Art, I trudged wearily A popular watersports area of Bovillas and SOARING mansions.HIGH: al The has long visitors, stars or celebrity clients. And while the grapevine may have you the daunting dune at the edge view sports erywhere along this coast), Bolonia up to the neighcity ‘hipper’ its believe by the from area is full of lonia’s stunning beach. the Tajo gorge been overshadowed Conil. snooty and (top) a money-makers, But in true Rocky fashion I conquered bours at Tarifa, El Palmar andbe turning, with typical town scene scratch beneath the tranHowever, the tide appears to beach-goquil opulence and you will many ‘domingueros’ (local Sunday picnic basket) find a down-to-earth, sporty ers kitted out with gazebo and the crowds. community ready to welbanking on Bolonia to escape who has come visitors with open Eddie Grannel, an Irish waiter include incredible statues years, tells me arms. Roman remains at Baelo Claudia worked here for the last five shadows to HISTORIC: feel rather ge“There’s such a community the town has gone ‘from Tarifa’s my measly man-bun made me on the spirit here,” confirms new still has a big part to play people’s first choice’. neric for once. five years has Fish TYRE CENTER tapas festivals the established resident Sue Davies, 51, “The transformation in the last “The village Costa de la Luz, with tuna Flip-flops and swim shorts are the easy-living, still catch who relocated with husband code in a town where really been amazing,” he says. but its popu- held at the big four towns whichusing trap dress 794way, Wayne last August. Phoenician 657 old 956 tuna thetel: itself hasn’t changed that much good-time vibe is infectious. the Moorish invaConil, Barbate and “There’s a great mix of nasea: Tarifa, out atC/Sierra larity has gone through the roof.” Tarifa was the first point of IV El Bravo, whose Bermeja s/n, working here I nets the whole gastionalities and everyone is that kick-started He adds: “When I first started in the height the town Pueblo Nuevo de Guadiaro sion in 711 AD. But Sancho the battlements of de los Atunes (the Zahara132 so supportive of each othwas one of three waiters. Now, of us rushed tro fest scene,A7-KM statue still keeps vigil below the town he name). Iceland er, it makes it a wonderful clue is in the of summer, there are up to ten Opposite Guzmán Castle, wouldn’t recognise towns place to live.” in 1292. These bleached-driftwood fishing off of our feet.” reconquered www.grupomolinodelconde.es www.grupomolinodelconde.es a fresh-andClaudio are litto Morocco is “There’s just so much to The impressive ruins of Baelofrom the beach give the Costa de la Luz more conBehind him, another fast ferrydaily traffic jam to join the do here too - golf, tennis, port thedel natural feel compared to thedel Sol, but erally a Roman stone’s throw departing Ribera Marlin, shipAntiguo Cortijo Valderrama world’s busiestBlue the Sotogrande padel tennis, sailing or the trived pleasures of the Costa something and well worth a visit. in the Straits, one ofLocal 34 to an awkward for Autovía A-7 · Km 130 · 11311 Sotogrande beach,” she adds. “You Free to EU citizens, which led as I handed you don’t have to look far ping lanes. Tel. +34 956 61Tangier which has 55 takes 35 Tel. +34 956 236 063 more sophisticated: take Vejer, encounter with the receptionist The 14-kilometre crossing to in a69 hilltop day, and it’s Turn to Page 18 day after Brexit. over my driving licence, the and ‘ahhing’, I styled itself as one of the best-kept minutes so you can do it easily chic Tarifa, out-of-north-Africa But after a lot of ‘umming’ an EU citizen pueblos blancos; and boho with kooky well worth it for the ultimate 20 YEARS the epitome of cool, rammed made my case that I am still experience. boutiques full the pace hots EXPER (for now) and was allowed through. towns in cafes, funky surf shops and If Tarifa is laid-back-cool by day, Roman AND thrill-seekers. OLD BUILDS IENCE ON NEW One of the best-preserved to skinan impres- of wind-bronzed Continues Page 20 ON THE SERRA And with the ratio of dreadheads Andalucia, Baelo Claudia boasts and fish-salting heads set at approximately one to one, sive temple, forum, basilica, NIA Urb. Los Pinos, its wealth. factory from which it once derived Manzan

2008

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Rob Horgan native in the goes Serrania de Ronda and discovers backroad gemsthe the Genal Valleyof

HERE are few beer with an places in the world where you can army general general stands … all the rounds!and even fewer wheredrink Ronda, the Celebrating however, is one of those bar El Porton,a recent promotion with places. friends in quintessen ish Legionnair an olé away from Spain’s tial e Carlos Velo oldest bullring After introducing is eager to include - Spanme to the town’s quail eggs me in the party. signature tapa Carlos (above) Iraq, Afghanista - jamon and regales me with tales from the ‘best place n and Bosnia before tours to explaining why “I have been in the world’. Ronda is says, taking all over the world and back into his a swig from his cana seen many things,” he and pushing face. “But Ronda been to.” his glasses is the best place I have Originally from ever ago when he Madrid, Carlos moved its two nationaljoined the Spanish to Ronda some 35 years Legion, which naires at present.bases here, counting has one of on around 800 “The quality legioncan live like of life in Ronda is like a gentleman nowhere else everyone else. here, in Madrid in Spain. I I would just “Everything be like is affordable, ing from tapas if you like in your pocket. bar to tapas bar andyou can spend the day goyou will still “And the scenery have change is breathtakin g,” he adds. “The walks Continues

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OPINION Spiking shame WHY isn’t more being done to prevent spiking along the Costa del Sol? There is clearly a serious problem that many of the bars or venues are failing to address. It is not a new problem. We launched a campaign two years ago! More warning labels should be on display in bars to remind punters of the dangers of being robbed, or worse, raped in this fashion. It is a stain on the coast and has the potential to turn away tourists who may not feel safe to go out and enjoy themselves.

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IT has been over a year since the Olive Press exposed the shady business practices of expat publisher Stan Israel. While it is not easy to knock another publication, it is hard to ignore the story when multiple members of ex-staff and former printers queue up with stories of non-payment. Particularly when staff costs at the Olive Press - not to mention the printing bill - are our two highest outlays each month. If nothing else, business owners and readers deserve to know that the playing field is just a little askew... and if they support publishers like this, they should know what

•

IT is unbelievable that someone could be so cruel to murder an endangered bear. If a local farmer is upset that some of his livestock has been killed, killing a bear on a nature reserve is not going to rally people around his cause or solve the problem. But what is equally as worrying is that someone was able to bring a weapon to a protected area, shoot an animal dead and get away scot-free. Hopefully authorities at the Muniellos Nature Reserve are looking into improving their security measures!.

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la cultura The LIFE Laundry Continued on page 22

Film Keep: I would never part with my old video copy of The Enchanted April, based on the 1922 book by Elizabeth von Arnim. The film isn’t widely known but it certainly lodged deeply in my subconscious. It’s a very beautiful film, probably over-romanticised but I’m not one to complain about an excess of romance, ever! Chuck: Charlie Chaplin and Fred Astaire. To my mind they are very similar. One dances, one waddles, neither can act. Also, James Bond films; unbelievable, false and stupid.

NAM BIBENDUM: ipsum sed lacinia volutpat, nulla orci gravida lectus, ut pulvinar augue pede ac tortor. Curabitur ligula tortor, aliquet sed, dapibus quis, porttitor eget, ligula.

Keep: Choral music, any of it…the human voice used in harmony. Lovely! Why do we have the ability to sing? It fulﬁlls no apparent biological need.

Books Keep: Certain books have significantly influenced major decisions in my life, often long after their initial reading. Like most people I read primarily for pleasure but when I consider which books I value most highly, I find that the ones I would never part with are the ones that have changed my life. Initially I began reading the books and poetry of Laurie Lee because of his identification with Gloucestershire, my home county for over twenty years. As I Walked out One Midsummer Morning, published in 1969, first introduced me to Andalucia. At around the same time I bought a discard from my local library for the princely sum of 10p that also took me deep into the enchanting past of Andalucia: Two Middle-aged Ladies in Andalucia, by Penelope Chetwode. These two books, more than any others, sowed the first seeds of interest in my future home.

LOREM ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aliquam turpis. Proin varius pellentesque dui. Mauris ligula metus, tempus quis, euismod ut,

THE most exciting museum to open in Andalucia since the Picasso gallery, has just got bigger. The Thyssen museum, which is scheduled to open in Malaga next year, is expanding before the first visitors even cross the threshold. The city council has approved the purchase of a neighbouring building to the Palacio Villalon, the proposed home to the gallery. Under new plans, the extra 2,000 square metres will become part of the museum. Work on the main site is scheduled to complete at the the end of this year, but the conversion of the new buildings won’t finish until the end of 2009. The museum itself is scheduled to open its doors in 2009. The city has paid 806,000 euros for the property on Calle Martires. It will form part of the museum which will house a selection from the Carmen Thyssen Col-

lection of 19th century Spanish and Andalucian art. The 358 paintings already earmarked for the Malaga collection will include works by Zurbaran and Sorollo. Over a third of them will have never before been on public display. The Palacio Villalon was built in the early 16th century and was in use as commercial property until early last century. It lies in the historic centre of Malaga just 500 metres from the Picasso museum. It is hoped that together the two museums will make Malaga a Mecca for art-lovers and boost the city´s bid to become the European City of Culture in 2016. A source at the museum said: “Things are coming on well... the Baroness is very enthusiastic about it and wants to make a big splash.”

Chuck: Anything by Jilly Cooper – she can’t write and all her characters are complete stereotypes. Also all of Charles Dickens; gloomy and depressing! Continued on page 22

FOR anyone with the stamina, an eclectic taste in music and – perhaps – a certain anarchic take on life, our region boasts plenty of opportunities to kick back and join with thousands of like-minded hedonists. Granada alone hosts two of the most famous small fests on the calendar: the Rocket Festival near Alhama de Granada; and the Dragon Fest near Órgiva. Each has its devotees and its own appeal. If you are familiar with one or the other, or if you’ve never dreamed of going to either, the Olive Press brings you a guide to both.

The Dragon Fest

This is the real deal. It’s the kind of event that hippie-kids of the Sixties and flower-folk of the Seventies easily recognise. Technically, it’s not an organised festival but a spontaneous gathering of the alternative, the anarchic and the free-living. As it is a free festival, it attracts an eclectic mix of locals, youngsters from all over Spain and alternative life-stylers from the rest of Europe.

The Rocket festival It’s like Glastonbury in the sun, if that’s not an oxymoron. Those with any recent experience of the UK festival scene will get the idea. It’s not free, but 100 euros for three days of bands and performers is not quite a fortune (see www.rocketfestival.com). This year’s event in May will be the third and the all-British organising team is aiming for an attendance of around 5,000 punters. WHEN Kicks off on May 16 with the main headline acts on Saturday and Sunday. Most Spanish, who lack the Spirit of the Blitztype attitude as the Brits and will turn up for one day WHERE Near the reservoir of Bermejales, close to Alhama. There’s loads of parking and shuttle buses run from the town. BERTHS The cost of camping is included in the ticket price and there are no added charges for

motorhomes. Otherwise good op- ellers and aliens GRUB Festival food - veggie tions in Alhama. MUSIC Eclectic is again the mot stuff, lots of ethnic stalls, wooddu jour. This year the big headlin- fired pizzas, Moroccan couscous ers mix flamenco rhythms with CRIME Fully-legal, unlike the dance, reggae and hip-hop. Sat- Dragon, there is professional urday will be Muchachito Bombo security plus lots of volunteer Infierno, who is shifting a lot of stewards. Some petty thefts from records at the moment. Sunday’s tents but nothing you can’t avoid stars should be Los Delinquentes. by keeping your hand on your British invitees are 80’s ska heroes ha’penny Bad Manners and dance pioneers POISON Beer, bit of dope probably and cocktails Coldcut ATMOSPHERE Less anarchic in the themed Space Bar than the Dragon, the aim is for a FACILITIES Wees with ease. chilled-out, family-friendly event. The fact that you’re paying means There’s a load of other stuff be- you can expect properly mainsides the music. Circus, comedy, tained porta-loos cabaret and street performers ADVICE “Bring a tent and exshould be enough to stave off any pect to see out the whole weekend. It’s the only way to really boredom UNIFORM Anything you like as get the full experience. If it’s your long as it’s out of this world. This first ever fest then just immerse year, Saturday night at Rocket is yourself in the vibe. It’ll blow you Space Night where everyone’s en- away,” says Marcus Clements, couraged to dress up as space trav- the festival organiser.

2008 festival round-up SEVILLA Soberao Jazz - March 6 - 8. Teatro del Centro Social, Dos Hermanas Small-scale, intimate jazz festival. No camping, just concerts including Zymad, Radio Espantoso and Pedro Cortejoso Quartet. email soberaojazz@ yahoo.es JAEN Etnosur - July 18 - 20. Alcala la Real, Jaen Free multicultural festival of music, circus, cinema, crafts, workshops and conferences. Free admission, cheap camping. www.etnosur.com ALMERIA Creamﬁelds Andalucia - August 9 - 11

Playa Guardias Viejas, El Ejido Full-on festival of electronic, techno and pop Tickets: €40 until 15 March More info and ticket sales: www. creamﬁelds-andalucia.com SEVILLA Territorios Sevilla - May 22 May - June 8. Monasterio de la Cartuja, Sevilla 11th international festival of popular music. 2008 line-up not yet released but last year included acts such as Echo and the Bunnymen, Capercaillie, Mogwai, Carlinhos Brown. Three stages and camping available. www.territoriossevilla.com

WHEN While beginning ofﬁcially on March 20, punters start arriving usually days before. The busiest days are Saturday and Sunday, but the chilliest vibe is on Friday night WHERE In the riverbed next to Cigarones, (nearest village Tablones on the A348 near Orgiva). Drive down into the riverbed and park wherever you can BERTHS There is a designated campsite, but most visitors tend to sleep in their cars. Staying in nearby Órgiva is the best bet for comfort. MUSIC Music is eclectic. It ranges from punk to techno, with sitar and bongos thrown in. There are several stages, cafes, clothes shops and healing tents. Rumours abound every year that Julian Cope, of Teardrop Explodes, is going to play. ATMOSPHERE Ambience ranges from Mad Max-style anarchism to gentle “folksey” hippy’ism. Plenty of stuff for kids, including stone mazes for them to play in.

The Green Dragon area has the nicest ambience (including a wall of Olive Press articles). There are massage areas, stone circles and a programme of acts. “The Lux” is the main event - an extravagant theatrical display at midnight on both Saturday and Sunday nights featuring dancing dragons, ﬁreworks and lasers. UNIFORM Not a lot! If you wear smart clothes people will think you are in fancy dress. Nudism is big GRUB Expect not only veggie burgers and chips, but also some nice ethnic food CRIME Some skinheads turned up two years ago and stabbed a Frenchman over an argument about the price of a baked potato. Occasional aggro from the local Guardias, but generally it is safe POISON In the main, beer and a good bit of puff. Although rumours are that you can buy other stronger substances in various spots FACILITIES You’re having a larf, inchya? Basically, pits with planks ADVICE “Wear sturdy shoes; bring water and either sun cream or waterproofs. The past two years it has rained heavily, but you could ﬁnd yourself in a heat-wave,” says Jason Heppenstall, who - like Chris Stewart - lives nearby and will be manning a stall called The Citrus Press selling vodka and lemon juice - go and say hello.

the olive press - Western Edition - Issue 28

Music

Thyssen museum is not even open yet, but it is already expanding. By ANDREW LOWREY

Chuck: Jazz. It has no structure. It’s incomprehensible. I like melody and structure in my music. Perhaps that’s very old fashioned but you did ask.

Homely things Keep: My electric blanket. I live above 1,000m and don’t have central heating. Need I say more? Chuck: Toasted sandwich maker. It one of those things that sit on the shelf and need cleaning every time you use it. It still stinks the house out with a very unappetising aroma!

Mementos Keep: The last gift I gave my mother; my children’s ﬁrst teeth; Mary-Jane, my ﬁrst doll. Chuck: My childhood security blanket. At least it was once a blanket. It now measures about 3 inches by 4 through decades of overuse. I really shouldn’t need it now, should I?

Free Choice: throw out anything you like. All forms of advertising, populist TV and radio, politicians and cats.

As a new documentary is made, TV presenter BARRY BIRCH tells the extraordinary and moving story about the life of US bullfighter John Fulton and how he adopted a gypsy from the poverty of the slums of Sevilla CHANCE encounters can change your life. Mine happened on meeting a Spanish gypsy called Federico Fulton Short. When Steve Fishwick, director of Cut Productions, approached me with a proposal for a new television project about artists in Andalucia, I was – unsurprisingly perhaps - keen to throw myself into a subject that would have me travelling around one of my favourite parts of Spain... and also working with a small professional ﬁlm crew who had shown themselves to be dedicated to producing quality programmes. Researching for a proposed project is both fun and frustrating. The fun part is uncovering interesting and original material suitable for your chosen subject. The frustration comes when you have to be brutal and cut out some of your hard work in the interests of making it presentable. Daisy Caudron, our scriptwriter, had unearthed a lot of subject matter and found some interesting artists to form the core of our new series. John Fulton Short, the American matador and artist who used bulls’ blood to create his paintings, was one of those colourful and interesting characters we would focus on.

While there were half a dozen others, including Rafael Alberti and Joaquin Peinado, one of the best things about Fulton was that there were still people living here who remembered him……great for interviews. We were making great headway and about to start filming... until disaster struck and all the scripts were stolen from our camera car. No scripts, no shoot! But we had got far enough with our research to realise that the life of John Fulton was a much better story than we had at first anticipated. A story never properly told, here was a man whose life and work had clearly touched many people. We decided to go back to the drawing board to focus entirely on him. A young American, from Philadelphia, Fulton had the impossible dream of becoming a matador and living in Seville, capital of the bullfighting world. Incredibly he not only went on to achieve his dream, he also left behind a legacy of fine art as well. Our trump card was John’s adopted son, a fascinating man – and gypsy - called Federico Fulton, who still lives in Sevilla. The interviews with him proved to be the turning point not only for our project but for me personally. I was very moved by the whole story of both John and Federico’s life.

Federico was born into a Hungarian gypsy family and lived his early life in what could only be described as child slavery. Forced to dance he would perform with goats and monkeys in the street, getting paid a pittance to largely support his brutal father’s drinking habits. But, as we would discover, he would rise above this. And so, inspired by an incredible story, we embarked on a journey that would take us filming all over Andalusia: in the streets of Sevilla and Ronda; in bullrings and art galleries and also with Fulton’s friends and family, both on location and in their homes. With Federico Fulton always there to guide us, we started to unearth the real story behind this great man. John Fulton had become obsessed with bullfighting at the age of 13 when he saw the moving film Blood and Sand with Tyrone Power. Falling in love with the bravery, colours and sounds of the bullring, he knew then that he wanted to be a bullfighter and live in Spain. But it was only later, in the early 1950s when he won an art school scholarship to San Miguel de Allende in Mexico, that he got his first taste of tussling with fighting bulls alongside professional matadors. The Mexican matador,

Pepe Ortiz, really took to Fulton and helped train him in the classic moves of the corrida. Fulton went on to kill his first full-sized bull in 1953. But he always knew Spain was his goal and with just 400 dollars in his pocket, he bought a oneway ticket across the Atlantic on a voyage that would change his life. Upon arriving in Seville John got his first break when the great matador Juan Belmonte took him under his wing. He would travel from his humble lodgings in the city to cape bulls on Belmonte’s ranch near Utrera. He soon learned to master the art of bullfighting under his great mentor, who described Fulton as being “like a kid from Triana.” An amazing accolade from this bullfighting legend. The story of John’s triumphs and failures reads almost like a fairy tale, and indeed, he had arrived in Spain at a truly magical time during a golden age for bullfighting. His determination in the bullring was so noted that he even attracted the attention of Ernest Hemingway, who admired John’s efforts and even once helped him out of financial difficulties with a 100-dollar travellers cheque. As well as being a budding matador, John was also, of course, an artist. With the help of some friends he set up his own art gallery in Sevilla. This helped to support him through his early days as a bullfighter. In 1963 he graduated as a full matador in the Real Maestranza

A Scottish family who lost €30,000 renting their Estepona home to Brinkman and his wife Johanna Te Riet An English couple who lost thousands in a rental scam A team of 15 salespeople who lost around €150,000 in a Marbella luxury apartment scam Some 21 Dutch workers defrauded out of

€365,000 by a company fronted by Brinkman At least 10 people who lost tens of thousands from a dodgy property website, Wijkopenuwdroomhuis.nl

When the Olive Press broke the story of the alleged swindling of German expat stuntman Peter Wicke, 48, in March, we had no idea we that a deluge of alleged victims would contact us. Indeed, in the last two months alone, we have been contacted by over 30 alleged victims and our reports have now featured in national newspapers and on TV in Holland. It all started with when Marbella-based Wicke told us how he lost €2,500 in a bogus €5 million film deal with Brinkman’s investment company JE Investeringen (or JE investments). Describing it as a ‘very clever scam, both deceptive and calculated’, the company had tried to look legitimate by getting registered with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce under the name ‘Jan Te Riet’. British expat Randolph Von Gans also approached JE investments about finance for a multi-million Costa Del Sol property development, but pulled out after becoming suspicious about the company and Te Riet’s demands. But Dutch expat Toon Van De Wiel wasn’t so lucky. The business analyst had first met Brinkman and his wife Johanna Te Riet at a barbecue organised by the Parents Teacher Association (PTA) of exclusive €15,000-a-year Aloha College,

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after String of victims come forward Olive Press exposes film conman

A BRITISH man has spoken of his ‘terror’ after a man tried to snatch his four-year-old son from a hotel in Almeria. Mancunian Shaun Kennedy was left with a bloodied face, olive press EXCLUSIVE A SUSPECTED conman exa swollen hand and a twisted By Joe Duggan posed by the Olive Press after knee after fighting off the child I fell duping a Hollywood stuntman snatcher at the Hotel Best Safor company before smelling that in a €5 million deal may be part film and pulling out of a much binal. stunt! of a crime family with hundreds a rat deal. The man struck up conversabigger of victims. tion with Kennedy and his son have not escaped so Since the Olive Press front-page But others Chase before attempting to story on Peter Wicke’s court ‘lightly’.Marbella businessman pull the four-year-old from a battle with Jan Herman Brink- One Toon Van De Wiel is batlift as the doors closed. man, half a dozen more victims Sanneto get back €90,000 he Chase suffered carpet burns tling UNDER FIRE: Brinkman with have approached us. on his legs as the abductor our story to Brinkman, allegedly for Marbella-based Wicke, 48, gave chiringuito investment. wife Johanna and dragged him along a hotel corhanded €2,500 to Brinkman a beach documents, the Dutchridor. property deal. when seeking investors for his In police IBAN that he said was in wife in a dodgy Kennedy then grappled with the man claims he was persuaded Johanna’s name. A signed legal document seen by man to get his son back. it was a ‘fabulous’ investment, “But afterwards they claimed the Olive Press shows Brinkman, “It has really shaken me up and but the money simply vanished they didn’t get the money. They Marbella-based, agreed to repay I’m still in shock,” he said. “He but has yet to do so. with no comeback. Chase and saysay I didn’t send it, which is pre- Bromhaar, brother-in-law was looking at to Chase and Van De Wiel told the Olive Brinkman’s I turned that used football boots as Press: “We met Brinkman and posterous.” te Riet was the subject ing hello. if he was going to say A SUSPECTED paedophile gang has been rounded up. Marbella police are investigat- Gert Jan asked him his wife Johanna Te Riet at our ing after their bank confirmed of a TV crime investigation by hello back and he did. presents to lure vulnerable children children’s school barbecue last the IBAN is under the name of Dutch journalist Rob Vorkink “I just thought that the man was Four men, aged 34 to 55, are suspected as September. in 2010, before moving to being nice – nothing more to it.” of taking part in the abuse of children Johanna's father, Jan Te Riet. “They became very close to Meanwhile, another Dutchman Spain. The Brinkmans were not The police are investigating young as five years old. the me to infor comment as we Police suspect the gang videoedtaken us and he convinced Gerard Grootte Bromhaar in- available the incident. vest in this bar in Marbella. So sists Brinkman stole €42,000 went to press. abuse, which is thought to have I transferred €90,000 to an place at one of their houses in La Linea.

Name and shame LIFE OF LUXURY: Private school and Porsche cars for Brinkman EXCLUSIVE

concerned.” where their sons were classmates. Tempted by Brinkman to invest in a Marbella Aloha College were unavailable for comment, albeach bar, Van De Wiel transferred €90,000 though it is understood Johanna has now been removed from the PTA. to an IBAN account in BrinkBut the scams did not stop man’s wife’s name, as inthere, allegedly. structed. The Brinkmans claimed the “He pushed us and Another Brit Frank Ferris came a cropper when he rented his money didn’t arrive. A monthour six-year-old very three-bedroom Estepona house long investigation by the bank revealed the IBAN is in agressively then ran to Brinkman and Johanna Te to the bottom of the Riet before agreeing to sell it to the name of Jan Te Riet. The them. garden to escape” money has not been returned “They were very nice. They said to Van De Wiel. money was not a problem, alSince then a number of angry though sometimes Brinkman parents have resigned from the PTA, on which Johanna was conveniently a had a BMW or Range Rover and sometimes an old banger,” Scot Ferris, 59, told the Olive Press. member. “She has been handling money for the PTA,” “Everything was fine for the first 11 months. We explained one. “All the parents at the school agreed a price and contract. But as soon as the think it is a disgrace. It’s disgusting. We are very contract was signed things changed, the deposit was not forthcoming and the rent stopped.” Ferris took the couple to court and they were evicted, leaving the Scot with unpaid bills and legal fees of more than €30,000. But the story became even more remarkable, when Ferris discovered that during the year they had been in the home they had been subletting to holidaymakers via website Owners Direct. One family from Essex, Julia and Colin Reeves paid a €500 deposit via Paypal to rent the home, and were then slapped with a shock text demanding ‘damages deposit’ of €3,500 on arrival by Johanna Te Riet. Mrs Reeves described what happened next as ‘a horror story’. “We ended up handing over €1,500 in cash along with my credit card,” said Mrs Reeves, a 47-year-old PA. It was no surprise that a few days later Barclaycard were in touch to inform her that the card had been used to rent a car. “Obviously I had not authorised this,” she added. On departure, they had to wait hours for the couple to turn up with their damages deposit, alongside their bemused 12-year-old son. ACCUSED: Brinkman (right) ‘Needs to spend next 60 years in jail’

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THE BIG PAYBACK

FLAMING: Wicke and (right) during stunt

EXCLUSIVE By Joe Duggan

HE has set himself on fire, jumped off exploding speedboats and thrown himself out of high-rise buildings. Now Hollywood stuntman Peter Wicke is diving headlong into a bitter Costa courtroom showdown over a dodgy multi-million film deal. Marbella-based Wicke, who has appeared in over 400 films and TV shows, is suing a Dutch expat after claiming he was scammed in a bogus partnership deal. The 48-year-old German is gunning for Dutchman Jan Herman Brinkman, who he claims took him for a bone-shaking ride. In a classic costa shakedown, he insists Brinkman’s company Jene Investments owes him thousands after he entered a promised multi-million euro

Hollywood stuntman erupts after losing thousands in bogus €5 million Costa film deal to invest in his own film company. However, he claims Brinkman had no intention of stumping up any money for him and was merely after his own. “I am absolutely raging,” Wicke told the Olive Press. “I answered an advert in a local newspaper (not the Olive Press) offering investment in projects. Next thing I am thousands out of pocket.” Wicke, who has lived on the Costa del Sol for two years, was hoping to find an investment partner for his com-

deal

pany, Movie Television Productions International PW. Planning to produce a couple of films in Andalucia, he was naturally interested when he spotted the offer ‘safe and secure’ investment with of ‘no results, no payment’. After three meetings at the end of year, he claims he was offered a last €5 million investment deal from Brinkman and his mysterious ‘business partner’ Jan Te Riet, who Wicke never met.

THE Junta may be made responsible for repaying tens of millions handed out in bogus training schemes. A judge in Huelva has filed a motion demanding that any money that cannot be recouped in the €2 billion Edu scandal will have to be paid by the Junta. In an unprecedented case, he The plan was to set up a joint com- thorities insisted the aupany, for which he himself was asked sponsible would be refor any comto stump up €10,000 for legal and pany or individual found notary fees. guilty of taking money In the end he handed over €2,500 be- fraudulently that is defore he smelt a rat and went to police. clared bankrupt. “It is a very clever crime system and The investigation cenhas probably taken a fair few people,” tres on funds allocated insisted Wicke last night. to training programmes “I have worked in Hollywood for years for the unemployed, that and nothing like this has ever hap- mostly did not take place. pened. If I see him in court I’m not Under the scheme, milsure I will be able to contain myself. lions were stolen in “This deception has been very con- grants for bogus acadscious and calculated.” emies, which were set up When the Olive Press confronted in disused buildings and Brinkman about the case, last night, merely furnished when he declined to answer our questions. officials were sent to inspect.

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Child abuse gang held

But oddly, after getting out the €1,500 and counting it it in front of them, Brinkman suddenly put it back in his pocket and made a run for the front door. “He pushed us and our six-year-old out of the way very aggressively,” she said. Meanwhile, a friend was pushed to the floor, left badly bruised. “He ended up running round the back of the villa, down the bottom of the garden and jumped through some trees to get away, leaving his son at the villa with all of us.” Amid the chaos, in scenes reminiscent of Fawlty Towers, a new family of rental clients suddenly emerged in the front drive ready for their summer holidays. It emerged they had also been duped into paying €4,000 to rent the house. In their native Holland, the allegations against Brinkman are even more serious. In 2014, Robert Jan Schoor was one of 15 Dutch salespeople who claim to have lost up to €15,000 in a fake Marbella property business fronted by Brinkman. Schoor quit his successful sales-training business to join Van Der Meer Investments, which purported to have dozens of exclusive Costa properties to sell. “Brinkman said I’d be a millionaire in a year and I was persuaded to pay €2,500 to join and was then given a contract for €7,500 a month to train his team,”

CAUGHT: Mayorga

One man has been named as Natalio footSolis Mayorga, who worked as a was ball coach for years in La Linea and a frequent visitor to Gibraltar’s Victoria Stadium The gang is believed to have used football chilboots and jerseys as presents to earn dren’s trust. after Police were alerted to the group he finding a 14-year-old boy told them had been abused by one of the men.

Lisa Smuggler faces extradition over Brown’s disappearA BRITISH man wanted in connection to the murder of missing expat Lisa Brown has pleaded guilty to people smuggling. Stephen Jackson, 50, has pleaded guilty to smuggling

17 Albanians into the UK and after his trial will be extradited to Spain over his links to missing Lisa. He is believed to have close links to her boyfriend Simon Corner, who fled Spain

DODGY: ‘It hit us very hard,’ says alleged victim

after ance. Corner was tracked down to Denmark earlier this year and remains in custody in Algeciras after facing a grilling in San Roque court.

FLAMING: Wicke and THE Junta may be (right) during stunt made responsible for repaying olivepress tens of millions handed out in bogus training EXCLUSIVE schemes. By Joe Duggan olivepressnews A judge in Huelva has filed a motion demandHE has set himself ing that any money jumped off explodingon fire, +TheolivepressEs speedcannot be recoupedthat boats and thrown himself in out the €2 billion Edu of high-rise buildings. scandal will have to be paid Now Hollywood stuntman by the Junta. Peter Wicke is diving In an unprecedented long into a bitter Costa headcase, he insisted The plan was to set up room showdown over courta joint com- thorities would the aua dodgy pany, for which he himself be remulti-million film deal. was asked sponsible for any to stump up €10,000 Marbella-based Wicke, for legal and pany or individual comnotary fees. has appeared in over who deal to invest in his own guilty of taking found 400 films and However, film company. pany, In the end he handed over TV shows, is suing a Dutch Movie Television Productions he claims Brinkman had fraudulently that money €2,500 expat beafter no fore he smelt a rat and went is deInternational PW. claiming he was scammed intention of stumping to police. clared bankrupt. up any in www.diningsecretsofandalucia.com a bogusour app “It is a very clever crime partnership fornow Download himand and was merely after hismoney Planning to produce a couple of deal. system and The investigation films own. in Andalucia, The 48-year-old German cen“I am he was naturally inter- has probably taken a fair few people,” tres on funds raging,” enjoying the best absolutely Spanish isbegin gunning insisted Wicke last night. allocated for Dutchman Jan Herman the Olive Press. “I answeredWicke told ested when he spotted to training programmes the offer an advert ‘safe and Brinknews on the go. man, who he claims secure’ investment with of “I have worked in Hollywood for years for the unemployed, took him for a in a local newspaper (not the Olive results, ‘no and nothing like this bone-shaking ride. that Press) offering investment no payment’. has mostly ever hapdid not take in proj- After three pened. If I see him in In a classic costa shakedown, ects. Next court I’m not Under the scheme,place. he insists pocket.” thing I am thousands out of year, he meetings at the end of last sure I will be able Brinkman’s company claims he was to contain lions were stolen milJene Invest- Wicke, million investment deal offered a €5 “This deception has been myself. ments owes him thousands in very con- grants for bogus acadfrom Brinkafter he Sol for who has lived on the Costa del man and entered a promised multi-million two years, was hoping his mysterious ‘business scious and calculated.” emies, which were to find euro an investment When the Olive Press set up partner for his com- partner’ Jan Te Riet, who Wicke never Brinkman confronted in disused buildings met. and about the www.allaboutandalucia.com he declined to answer case, last night, merely furnished when our questions. officials were sent to inspect.

BE ‘APPY! Hollywood stuntman thousands in bogus erupts after losing €5 million Costa film deal

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After revealing that a Hollywood stuntman had been conned out of thousands in a bogus €5 million film deal, countless Olive Press readers come to us with tales about notorious Marbella-based figure Jan Herman Brinkman. Our investigation has been followed up by TV documentaries in Holland

Catch me if you can

Animal rights has long been at the forefront of the Olive Press mindset. In August 2008, we exposed a British woman for starving 16 horses and being responsible for the deaths of 26 more. More recently, in, we ran an Animal Rights special featuring articles as well as carrying out an investigation into Triple A animal sanctuary following police raids

Armageddon, ISSUE 143 The worst fires in Malaga’s history left the region a disaster zone, after 4,000 people were evacuated from their homes and 8,200 hectares of land was turned to ash

0 1Ations P TNO G T S E V

On the back of catching most wanted paedophile Matthew Sammon, the Olive Press went on the hunt of fellow most wanted fugitive Mark Acklom. Tracing his wife to a business address in Murcia we published an expose on his luxury ch Ca ch Ca me me life in Spain last issue and then this week we have tied Acklom to scams on the Costa del Sol

Animal rights

September 2012

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Involved in a long campaign to protect Ronda’s green spaces from a golf mega-project, the boss of Greenpeace Spain joins our fight

September 14th - Septemberwww.theolivepress.es 27th 2016

VICTIM

December 2010

Three Kings come early, Issue 72

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October 2015

SPANISH authorities have allegedly refused to repatriate the dead body of murdered Brit Andrew Bush. His body is currently in a tomb near to his Estepona home, where he was fatally shot three times by his ex girlfriend Mayka Kukucova in April 2014. While she has begun a 15 year sentence after being found guilty, Bush’s ex wife, Sam Mason, former BBC TV presenter, says their daughter Ellie Mason-Bush just wants to give her father a ‘respectable funeral’. “First we were told we could repatriate him but then the Spanish authorities changed their mind at the 11th hour and insisted on burying him, they slid him into a wall,” she said.

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VICTIM 2

it up when he fell in love with a beautiful Mexican girl who would sadly perish in the Mexico City earthquake. Perhaps the most fitting end to this amazing story was John’s last corrida in Mexico. Federico was asked by his father to ceremoniously cut the small pigtail that Fulton sported to show that he was a full matador. This marked the end of an era that saw one young boy realize his dream of becoming a matador and the other becoming a gypsy of two worlds. I think we all felt privileged to have been allowed into the world of this amazing matador/artist, and in our series John Fulton The Kid from Triana, John’s story has finally been told. Sadly John Fulton is no longer with us but he lives on through his son Federico, and their story is currently being shown as five one hour programmes on Living in Spain TV, Sky Channel 293 and will be available on DVD. Visit www.cutproductions.com for more information.

Issue 28, February 20th 2008

THEY have defrauded hundreds of clients via a string of clever scams. Using a number of different companies they have been making millions of euros a year in the timeshare-style frauds. Stephen Lawrence, 46, and his business partner Toni Muldoon, 61, are closely linked to a number of businesses under investigation in the UK. Described by investigators as “timeshare crooks”, last week the High Court dissolved their empire. After a long probe the UK’s Companies Investigation Branch wound up their companies T-One, Mediterranean Leisure and Kingswood Property Management (KPM) describing them as a “rogue enterprise”. Now the team of seasoned ‘crooks’ has been tracked down by the Olive Press to their mountain lair in Ronda. Living in a large detached three-bedroom house outside the town, Lawrence used the guise of an apparently respectable estate agent KPM to run the classic holiday club scam.

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On the brink!

That boy was Federico, and when their paths crossed through a chance encounter both their lives would change forever. Fulton devoted himself to parenting a child and in a way this helped him overcome his struggles to become recognized as a matador. Federico also blossomed and went on to ﬁnd his own unique way of painting. He would exhibit alongside his father and get well paid for his work. Fulton educated and raised the boy but the gypsy father had other ideas. He arrived on Fulton’s doorstep one night and at knife point threatened to wound John, take young Federico, and put him back on the streets to make money. But it was Federico who stepped into the fray saying he would rather die than go back to the gypsies. So he turned his back on his old life and was adopted into a new culture. Fulton became his legal guardian and the two became as close as any father and son could ever be. Federico even went on to try bullﬁghting himself but gave

Green fee for Ronda

olive press online

EXCLUSIVE The astonishing trail of allegations against suspected Porschedriving fraudster Jan Herman Brinkman finally leads to an arrest, as Joe Duggan discovers

VICTIM

in Sevilla and went on to fight all over Spain. Sadly though, he met with some fierce prejudice from the bullfighting impresarios and he was never fully accepted. He would often have to fall back on his art and through this would befriend the writer James Michener and the photographer Robert Vavra, whose photographs of Spanish bulls has been hailed as the “finest record” of the animals ever. After they all made a trip together to see the cave paintings in Altamira, Fulton became inspired to paint using the blood of the bulls he killed in the arena. His exhibitions at American airbases such as Rota in Cadiz would help him raise money to pursue his life in Spain. Another inspired idea was an artistic book, photographed by Vavra, that centered on the life of a gypsy boy living close to nature, a sort of modern-day Mowgli. It was through this project that he would meet his future adopted son. Fulton found a small gypsy boy on the streets of Sevilla and invited him to help them realize the book. He was so moved by what he saw of gypsy life that he would later seek to take this small boy out of his apparent life of poverty, and offer him the chance to read and write and not live wild in the streets. That boy was Federico, and when their paths crossed through this chance encounter both their lives would change forever. So moved by the hardship of gypsy life that he sought to take one small boy out of this life of poverty, and offer him the chance to read and write and not live wild in the streets.

**Western Edition**

This week sees the launch of our exciting new arts & culture section la cultura. As well as a ‘what’s on’ guide to events around Andalucía, we give you the important entertainment news, as well as our hilarious guide to spring’s hottest festivals pages 19 - 24

EXCLUSIVE: Olive Press tracks seasoned fraud gang down to their mountain lair

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From bullfighting to bulls blood paintings, the American hero who made Hemingway look like a pussy

PHOTO EXCLUSIVE: Greenpeace steps into Los Merinos battle

OlivePressNewspaper

•

IF GOD had wanted us to get grimy, lose our hearing and share copious quantities of warm beer, he’d have created the Summer festival circuit, writes ANDREW LOWREY. What he also created was Andalucia: a warm, sunny and perfect place for chilling out and listening to music late into a Spring evening.

“Los Merinos must be urgently stopped,” says boss of global pressure group See page 10

Unforgivable

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A Tale of Two Fests

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F EAT U R E

ROKEN dreams, shattered lives, financial ruin. This is the human cost of an alleged string of property scams carried out by a Dutch family gang based on the Costa del Sol, the Olive Press can reveal. Furious British expats and Dutch nationals, back home in Holland, have accused Jan Herman (Henk) Brinkman and several family members of swindling them out of hundreds of thousands, probably millions, of euros. Marbella-based Brinkman, 47, and his father-inlaw Jan Te Riet, 72, are alleged to be at the centre of a web of fake companies that have conned dozens of families both here and back home. But despite a mountain of evidence - and dozens of alleged victims - Brinkman remains at large and was even spotted last week driving a luxury white Porsche Cayenne in Puerto Banus. Today, the Olive Press can reveal just some of the accusations levelled at Brinkman and his cohorts: •

The LIFE Laundry

Early expansion

After a tip off to the paper, the Olive Press tracked down and photographed Crimestoppers Most Wanted Daniel Johnston, sought for a string of violent robberies in the UK. Despite informing the authorities, it amazingly took a month for them to pick him up

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la cultura Is your life full of clutter you know you don’t need? We ask Olive Press readers to take stock of their stuff and decide what they could chuck and what they couldn’t live without.

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the olive press - Western Edition - Issue 28

Let the festivities begin

Not Wanted, Issue 48

Beaten up at the Alhambra, ISSUE 22

19 19

the olive press - Western Edition - Issue 28

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Jesus Granada

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A nniversary

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BUR ED AT SEA?

DAYS AND OUT

The blonde and the bald Since Agnese Klavina disappeared in September 2014, the Olive Press has been pressing hard for answers. We were the first paper to link privatelyeducated Brit Westley Capper to her disappearance, picturing him in Aqwa Mist nightclub in our November 2014 edition. Since then Capper has admitted to killing a Bolivian mother in a hit-and-run incident, but, as revealed by the Olive Press is now back at his luxury Marbella mansion having been granted bail

Busting boiler rooms

Missing Amy mystery

The Olive Press has been investigating boiler rooms in Spain from day one. In 2011 we revealed that blacklisted British businessman Terry Wright had o ve press earned millions of euros by persuading unsuspecting investors to part with GREAT ESCAPE their hard-earned cash. The following year Wright bolted and bought a huge French chateau with his ill-gotten gains

Since Irish expat Amy Fitzpatrick, 15, went missing on New Year’s Day 2008 the Olive Press has been at the forefront of the investigations. An Amy special edition in 2009 revealed the squalid life that she was living in Mijas. Since then we have repeatedly kept Amy’s disappearance in the news o ve p e

The sad ru h

p N w hun Am

22 22

The CEO of organised crime and the bent mayor Recently labeled as a mini-Gurtel, the Olive Press has covered the ongoing Majestic case long before it reached the courts. As details emerged of the Eastern European gangsters behind the Casares property scam, the Olive Press revealed all about ‘Polish Al Capone’ mob boss Ricardo Fanchini and his cohorts, Armenians Robert Mani and Robert Gaspar

Laund y FM

All that glitters is not Goldman o

To hardy Olive Press readers, Nigel Goldman will be a familiar figure. Exposing naughty Nige countless times for a string of scams including selling gold coins and stamps on eBay Goldman was finally handed a 12-month suspended sentence in January. He still has many cases to answer for, with countless victims baying for his head in Spain

W N

GOLDMAN GU LTY

Missing Lisa, Simon Corner and the people smuggler Holiday club conmen When Sco sh mum L sa B own wen m ss ng n Novembe o 2015 was he O ve P ess who exposed S mon Co ne s shady Co ne human affi k ng nk W dea ngs on he coas m m w We we e he fi s pape o p c u e Co ne e vea how he uses va

ous a ases and nked h m o conv c ed peop e smugg e S e ve p e phen Jackson Wh e Jackson nge s n a UK p son awa ng ques on ng Co ne … m s no be e as he wa s o hea h s a e om A gec as p son

Tracked down to a mountain lair in Ronda, the Olive Press exposed the timeshare-style cons conducted by infamous fraudsters Stephen Lawrence and Toni Muldoon and their Costa del Sol cronies way back in 2008. Put away in 2014 for running a bogus escort service Muldoon was one of the first Costa conmen to come under the OP spotlight

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British buyers are down but the coast will bounce back, insist leading property experts in second Olive Press Property Observatory - Inside Property magazine, from Page 17

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Who will cut out the cancer destroying Spain? ISSUE 154

Clifford guilty A PAIR of young girls paedophile PR guru Max Clifford sexually assaulted on the Costa del Sol have led to his conviction. Clifford - a long-time visitor to the coast and involved in charities and local events - has been found guilty of eight counts of sexual assault, mostly on minors. At least two were groomed on the coast, after being lured in with promises of stardom. He is pictured here with his showbiz chum Kenny Lynch at a bash in Marbella.

By Tom Powell and Jamie Micklethwaite

COSTA del Sol fraudster Nigel Goldman is hiding out in a classic English country cottage under the false name ‘Howard del Monte’. Goldman - aka ‘Del Monte’ has also returned to the business of buying and selling coins, stamps and antiques, it can be revealed. Renting on a six month lease in the charming Berkshire village of Kintbury, he and

As Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is dragged into the country’s biggest corruption scandal the Olive Press joined the million petitions in saying enough is enough The original and only English-language investigative newspaper in Andalucía

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It’s MORE fun in the sun

Cartel behind Putin’s mystery costa home EXCLUSIVE

The Olive Press can reveal that the Russian President may have bought a multimillion euro Marbella mansion with a group of six businessmen.

See full story on page 3

SPANISH Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is battling to save his political career after facing increasing pressure to resign over the PP corruption scandal. Nearly a million people have signed an online petition calling for him to step down, amid widespread protests. Opinion polls show that 77% believe he is now no longer fit to lead the country, while 54% believe there should be a general election. Opposition leader Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba has called for his head, demanding that Rajoy be grilled in Congress about the allegations. The prime minister stands accused of accepting illegal cash payments made to topranking party officials over a 12-year period.

Slush fund

Rajoy however fiercely denies the claims, describing them as ‘totally false’ and has said he will publish his tax returns online. Among the other politicians accused of taking ‘bungs’ are current General Secretary Maria Delores Cospedal, Senate President Pio Garcia Escudero and even former Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar. The money was allegedly taken from a €22 million slush fund hidden in a Swiss bank account controlled by former party treasurer Luis Barcenas. Barcenas kept secret ledgers of money received between Turn to page 2

BRITS are still happier in Spain, despite reports suggesting 90,000 have abandoned the expat dream. An exclusive Olive Press survey found that more than three quarters of our readers are happier since making the move.

For the full story, see No end to Spanish dream on page 4.

Goldman fled Spain last year amid accusations of fraud, leaving behind dozens of victims owed a total of €15 million. While he refused to answer questions, he seems happy living with Couling, her two daughters and two cats in the modest three-bedroom property. While the pair are Kintbury’s hottest topic of conversation, they are rarely seen and ‘keep themselves to themselves’. Couling’s family live nearby in Hungerford. In fact, the secretive man from Del Monte is seemingly only ever seen leaving the house to go to the post office. When the Olive Press confronted him in his countryside retreat, Goldman refused to come to the door, instead briefly poking his head out of his bedroom window.

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HIDEOUT: Goldman’s UK bolthole and (top) with Suzanne “I have nothing to say to you, with a parking ticket. but I look forward to meeting “I don’t understand why he hasn’t been arrested, if a trafyou again,” he called down. fic warden can find him then surely the police can,” said Parking ticket the neighbour, who wished to remain anonymous. His hair was disheveled, but “Everyone in the village he did not have the mous- knows he’s Goldman, whattache some have claimed he ever name he goes under.” is now sporting as part of his Goldman, who deleted his disguise. Facebook account recently, is The previous morning, Coul- currently being investigated ing was seen leaving the for failing to return millions house at 9am to load up their of euros to investors in his fisilver Vauxhall Zafira with nancial companies. boxes and head off, possibly Various victims told the Olive to a car boot sale. Press that they are practically One neighbour explained that destitute after losing their life the day they moved into the savings to his schemes, that house, a traffic warden arContinues on Page 4 rived and issued the couple

While millions sit on the breadline with the highest unemployment in history, and expats come into the firing line with new laws and taxes, the PM allegedly took 30,000-a-year from an 22m offshore slush fund... Enough is enough!

THUR

FREE

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Vol. 9 Issue 204 www.theolivepress.es

We will fight them on the beaches

Property

Expat unites with green group to save iconic Trafalgar Lighthouse from privatisation

Authority is simply looking for a way to ‘relieve itself of the financial burden of maintaining the site’. Insisting the last-ditched protest has nothing to do with his group’s own application

being turned down, he added: “We would also take over the running and costs of the lighthouse, but at the same time keep it open for everyone to enjoy.” The Califa group’s proposal,

olive press September 14th

- September

27th 2016

September

Marbella SOS - Page 31

NAVAL HERO: Nelson which came second, guaranteed to maintain the appearance of the lighthouse, as well as add a free interpretation centre, restaurant and picnic area employing 15 to 25 staff. By contrast, Floatel’s plan involves employing just two staff, closing the main entrance and cutting off more than 50% of the land and buildings to the public. It also plans to charge for entry with limited opening times. Stuart was motivated to challenge the decision after being swayed by local opinion. In particular, green group Ecologistas en Accion has filed a complaint with the Cadiz Port Authority against Floatel’s plans. “We are against the privatisation of public facilities such as the Trafalgar Lighthouse,” explained a spokesman. The Cadiz Port Authority has until November 15 to respond to both appeals.

Opinion Page 6

27th 2016 Spain Property 15 Guides

14th - September

Don’t get caught out when buying in Spain

Issue 10

WIN WIN WIN... Tickets to see the UK’s hottest

Eastender house hunting

PAGE III

Andalucia’s top Roman ruins

PAGE X

Cost of mansion life

PAGE XVII

BY THE BOOK

History for € 4.5m

ALMOST 13,000 rental properties holiday have been registered since new regulations fect in May ofcame into efThe first threethis year. months of the new legislation requires properties - which to meet specific requirements, including adequate furniture, external air conditioningventilation, and first aid kits - has seen 12,591 homes register. The Junta say ulations are the new reggive tourists designed to tee of qualitysome guaranservice and comfort.

UP FOR GRABS: Palacete de Cazulus is steeped in history

PAGE XII

Spain Property

years experience

Which sibling has sold a house to a president and who got the MD of Barratt Homes to sign on the dotted line?

Vol. 10 Issue 248 www.theolivepress.es September 14th - September 27th 2016

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Vol. 8 Issue 191 www.theolivepress.es

July 10 - July 23 2014

Full Moon festival comes under

fire

AN ‘irresponsible’ beach party is nilva the release of hundreds of ‘illegal’set to see lease, Town Hall for not banning the re- Costa, in Mijas. Chinese with the coast on high fire alert lanterns, despite a clear fire risk, The Costa del Sol firewatch group claim after an extremely dry Spring. campaigners. slammed the event, while local has It comes after the coast saw three bookinferThe Sabinillas Full Moon party will see nos last week - with Competa, Casares shop Sabinillas bookshop has withthe launch of the candle-lit lanterns at and Torremolinos all experiencing seri- drawn the lanterns from sale. midnight, watched by an estimated Manilva Town Hall however insisted 5,000 ous fires. revellers. the free event will go ahead on July At the weekend, more than 1,200 12 guests However opponents have criticised Ma- also had to be evacuated from el Club La as planned.

SPIKED!

continues on Page 3

the IN Oli VE ve ST Pr IG ess AT ES

Judgement Shocking failure to police drink-spiking days ahead in Spain

SPIKING ALERT

TWO former mayors are finally being hauled before POLICE in Spain have apparthe courts over the next By Imogen Calderwood, ently no official records for month. Carey Camel the crime of drink-spiking. F and Jared Garland Hospitals and town halls have also failed to give any indication of the severity of the summer season now well unproblem, despite a terrifying derway. 60% increase in sexual attacks “It is clearly becoming a bigger issue and particularly in in Spanish resorts last year. the summer,” said a source at The shocking revelation comes as assaults from spik- Marbella Town Hall. ing begin to soar, with the “The problem is we just don’t have the statistics to back it up.”

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It is this failure to keep official records of attacks that is making it hard to tackle the issue as millions of young holidaymakers descend on the costas this month. In an exclusive investigation, the Olive Press has uncovered evidence of numerous attacks at a variety of Spanish resorts including Puerto Banus, Fuengirola and Magaluf. At one nightclub, bosses sacked an employee for spiking a client’s drink, without even calling police, while at another, a teenage expat revealed how a man had brazenly ‘added a powder’ to her drink. Magaluf, in Mallorca, hit international headlines this

CAmpaigns

Stars come out to play

We meet Starlite founder Sandra Garcia Sanjuan See Page 20

OUCH?: Let the annual carnage begin in Pamplona, with the police on watch for sex assaults. See Page 8

week after a video of a British teenager performing oral sex on 24 men on a dance-floor went viral. The two minute clip shows the young blonde led on by a Police stations in Marbella, cheering, cat-calling crowd. The 18-year-old from North- Malaga, Mijas, Fuengirola ern Ireland has since claimed and Mallorca were shockingly her drinks were spiked and unable to provide any statistics about drink-spiking. she was later raped. The incident has led many Malaga National Police came concerned tourists - and ex- back insisting our request pats - to question the ability was ‘unauthorised’ – with no of the authorities in Spain to explanation why - before directing questions to its headtake drink-spiking seriously. quarters in Madrid.

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cias más de cerca. Queremos que los españoles entiendan esta grave situación que nos deja en el limbo y que podría impedir que siguiéramos viviendo aquí como llevamos haciéndolo durante años. Esta no es una petición insólita: el Reino Unido permite la posibilidad de obtener la doble nacionalidad tras cinco años de residencia. Curiosamente el Ministro Margallo conoce bien esta posibilidad ya que su hijo, que reside actualmente en el Reino Unido, la ha solicitado recientemente. Así que desde aquí os pedimos, esperamos e incluso suplicamos que os unáis a nosotros en esta causa. Algunos alcaldes y dignatarios ya se han unido a nuestra petición. Pero también necesitamos la ayuda de todos vosotros. Curiosamente los expatriados británicos lanzan este llamamiento exactamente 80 años después del comienzo de la guerra civil española en la que miles de jóvenes voluntarios británicos perdieron la vida. ¿Por qué? Porque creían en España. Y nosotros también. Estamos convencidos de que nuestra aportación a la estructura de vuestro país es muy importante. Queremos quedarnos aquí. No queremos volver. Para firmar la petición visitar change.org y busca ‘Doble nacionalidad para británicos con mas de diez años de residencia en España’

Translated by Mirian Moreno

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Download your FREE copy at: www.propertyguides.com/op Call our expert team on: +34 800 099 551 Or e-mail us on: op@propertyguides.com

October 2016

FIND HIM!

Gotcha! ISSUE 251

EXCLUSIVE AN arrest warrant has been issued for notorious Costa del Sol conman Nigel Goldman. Goldman, 58, who changed his name to Howard del Monte, was summoned to Fuengirola court in January over the defrauding of four expats to the tune of €750,000. However, he failed to show and a judge has now ordered police to bring him in.

Within hours of the National Crime Agency releasing its latest list of most wanted British fugitives, the Olive Press had tracked down, staked out and called in police to arrest suspect paedophile Matthew Sammon

Fraud

He was found guilty of fraud in the UK last year for the THIRD time and must wear a tag during his 12-month suspended sentence. Lawyer Antonio Flores, who is representing the victims, said he could face up to a decade in prison, if found guilty. “It has taken us two years to get to this stage and it is still just the beginning,” he added. Dozens of expat victims claim to have lost as much as €3 million to Goldman through a series of ponzitype schemes. He was first exposed through a series of Olive Press investigations.

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See our round-up of the year, starting on Page 15

In the wake of the Brexit referendum, the Olive Press published its first-ever Spanish front page in an unprecedented move to appeal to Spaniards to join expats pleas for joint nationality in Spain

Chateau Putin EXCLUSIVE By Tom Powell

Three wine cellars and a crop of Spain’s most-exclusive Pingus vines for Russian president’s luxury Marbella hideaway

GRAPE ESCAPE: Putin is to grow his own wine in this incredible Benahavis mansion

lars at the 10-bedroom palace in the exclusive enclave of Zagaleta - complete with private helipad and 22-car garage. A series of French oak barrels will store the wine. The climatised cellars cost an estimated €1 million to install and also include a separate champagne room with its very own fingerprint code entry system. “It is an amazing project and

no expense is being spared,” said the source. A spokesman for the small five hectare Pingus holding in Burgos - whose wines are Spain’s most expensive at €1,000 a bottle - was unable to confirm the purchase. “I am not able to give out any information about grapevines being sold, only about the bottles we sell and distribute,” she said.

In October 2012, the Olive Press was able to link the ExKGB boss Putin to a consortium of six wealthy businessmen behind the €19 million Zagaleta project. The epitome of extravagance, his 18,000m² plot boasts its own spa and gym, a cinema, piano bar, and two swimming pools. Putin has long been a big Hispanophile having visited

Spain on many occasions, with a recent book claiming he came in ‘illegally’ 37 times on false documents in the 1990s alone. He has also been linked to a Spanish construction company. It is also clear that Putin appreciates his wine, as his South of France mansion was revealed to have expansive wine cellars too, back in 2001.

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up unethical Campaign to clean agents and carve up between estate lawyers gathers speed

In 2009, the Olive Press turned the spotlight on the legal system as thousands of expats were fined after paying for what they believed were legal houses

Caged

1) VIDEO SPECIAL: Hell and high water as shocking floods leave deaths in Andalucia, 7 Sep 2015, 123,263 views 2) Are you ready for the ‘Big TV Switch Off’ in Spain?, 7

Los Merinos golfing madness years and nearly a dozen front pages later and the plans were finally scrapped in April 2015

Bin the bags In 2008, long before Tesco or Mercadona began charging for plastic bags, the Olive Press was on the case to get the bags shelved

Feb 2013, 115,784 views 3) Brit expats in Spain lose all BBC channels with ITV and C4 to follow soon, 6 Feb 2014 - 100, 578 views 4) EXCLUSIVE: Baron Rothschild indicted in France over fraud case, 18 Jun 2015 - 107,058 views 5) British tourist claims Gibraltar’s apes sexually assaulted her, 30 May 2015, 102,438 views 6) Man in hospital after 1,500 litres dropped on him by plane for Ice Bucket Challenge 27 August 2014, 75,637 views 7) Margaret Thatcher

K.O. theks kickbac Founded in 1835 to

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selling residential business involved houses in Mayfair Edward. The main of its 180th brother to an exclusive client list and letting a time when the elite property Winkworth is celebrating for ‘the season’ – large charity HIS year estate agency to the landed gentry dinner parties and debutante balls, company has lived anniversary. doors in 1835, the diamond jubilees, society held and Having opened its coronations, from strength to strength it events. the world. It also Winkworth has gone through wars, recessions, not only has it survived, such largest, Since then, at over 90 offices strong around on the moon. And based in Mayfair and man landing of the UK’s leading, and London’s now stands its head office – still has grown into onea strong international presence. offices in- offers services fromInternational and China Desk team. have estate agency withalone, the agency opened six new Costa del as Country House, time the core values of the company the local In fact, last year new venture in Guadalmina on the property Yet throughout this in its work. Expert knowledge onWinkworth all cluding an exciting its strong footing in the European al- remained engrained industry are somethinga tailored serproperty market and made brilliant progress as offering Sol. Capitalising on Spanish office has along the coast. A beauti- area, pride themselves on, as well get exactly market, the new to ensure that clients properties be- agents million, exclusive perspective sell. on €15 or costing ready, taking vice and unique looking to buy home in Estepona, whether they are ful seven-bedroom re- what they need, speak expedition, it is worth advice you should Guaing one of the highlights. of this latest foreign need expert property With the success all began as a family affair. That’s why if you You can contact Winkworth Winkworth Team. Winkworth. The origimembering how it in 1835 by Henry Mayfair, and there to your local952 880 941 or visit winkworth.es on Street, Winkworth was founded located in Curzon by Henry’s dalmina nal head office was office in Brighton, which was run was also a country

for a lot of people, the cautious a p p ro a c h that would be adopted at home often disappears under the buying abroad. time constraints of- whether acquiring But it is essential property - to know modern or older you are buywhat potential problems ing in to. this it is essential In order to achieve conducted to have a professionally to the pursurvey prior to committing chase. of Chartered The Royal Institution internationally recSurveyors is an ensures that its ognised body which of carrying out Appeal members are capable apthis function. While we are still to Surveyors has Gibson Gale Chartered working indepealing for lawyers are experienced surveyorsagents, banks step forward, we appendently to estate the best unnow extending our ensure and owners to peal to gain the supconflicted advice. where real barport of clean estate In the current marketand where buildagents. gains can be foundnot always as high Agents already supare ing standards buyers must porting the campaign as in northern Europe, Panorama include beware. look fine on the Properties, Cluttons Houses which may problems which and Terra Meridiana. surface often have lurk unseen. peace of mind and A survey ensures turning into a monTo add your support stops a purchase newsdesk@ email ey pit. call theolivepress.es or Chartered SurCall Gibson Gale2007551 951 273 575 veyors on 00350

practice of to expose the unethical using them has AN Olive Press campaign agents ‘kickbacks’ for firms. lawyers giving estate of a number of legal aims to stop the gained the support our ongoing probe Launched this month, paying estate agents unethical comprofessional against our ethical bent practice of lawyersfor awarding work. “Apart from being Spanish lawyers. forward has already added: such practices spoil the reputation of missions of up to 20% and rewards clean lawyers to step rules, in the Spanish economy about their And the appeal for generates mistrust concerned gained momentum. that someone is finally exposing this,” “It agents who are more quality service: “I am very pleasedMartos Gross from Gutierrez del Alamo unprofessional providing an independent commission than in everybody’s interest that the practice said lawyer Adolfo in Marbella. is in absolutely & Martos Abogados, 70% of the top firms offer commissions “It ends.” to our campaign include “I believe that up to also adding weight be stopped.” should it My Lawyer in Spain, Fuengirola Other law firms and in to agencies Anderson Lopez from MT Lawyers Lawbird, Fellow lawyer Javier PCL, Temple CamAsbria, Poveda & and sociates Lawyers Paradigm Family Law.

y Our 180th birthda

certainly the PROPERTY is almost anyone will make biggest purchase country. And yet, outside their home

www.theolivepress.es

NEWS IN BRIEF

Maiden voyage A DRIVERLESS car, the Citroen C4 Picasso, made its first journey in a 600km trek between the two Citroen factories in Vigo and Madrid.

Ryanscare

CASTELLON’S infamous ‘ghost’ airport which stood empty from 2011 now pays Ryanair €600,000 per year to fly five flights per week to and from it.

Not wanted

SPAIN is on alert for Soufiane Mezroui, 23, a suspected

Belgian terrorist thought to have fled to Spain following a stint fighting in Syria.

Air rage AVIATION minister Robert Goodwill announced future regulations could ban drunk passengers from flying for life and and dramatically limit onboard alcohol sales.

NEWS

Stamping down!

Top law firm under investigation as new ruling backs Olive Press campaign to stop kickbacks between estate agents and lawyers A MAJOR Costa del Sol law firm is being probed over kickbacks in return for conveyancing deals. Marbella-based Martinez-Echevarria Abogados has been denounced for breaching a legal code of ethics by paying commissions to estate agents for contracts. A new ruling by the Malaga Bar Association now means that the firm could be heavily fined and even suspended from practising. The association has launched an investigation, after the firm was accused of taking ‘power of persuasion com-

Israeli PM on wanted list

A SPANISH judge has issued an arrest warrant for controversial Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the death of ten human rights activists. Supreme court judge Jose de la Mata ruled he would reopen a case over the Freedom Flotilla attack, in 2010, should Netanyahu or seven other Israeli officials set foot in Spain.

TOS P 10 tories

square vandalised 24 hours after being unveiled, 17 September 2016, 50,493 views 8) Costa del Sol town mayor sends heart-warming message to expats in Spain following Brexit vote, 26 June 2016, 49,391 9) Spanish property prices to fall by a further 50%, 14 January 2013, 47,959 views 10) Powerful earthquake strikes southern Spain, June 12 2016, 42,487 views

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BANGED UP: Sammon bundled into police car and (inset) his campervan

PAGE 8

EXCLUSIVE: Expat tip leads Olive Press team to snare one of UK’s most wanted paedophiles

A Vol. 10

www.theolivepress.es

ll about

Issue 251

October 26th -

errania de Ronda

November 8th

2016

19 19

www.theolivepress.es

October 26th -

November 8th

2016

deep,high River mountain

Rob Horgan goes native in the Serrania de Ronda and discovers the backroad gems of the Genal Valley

SOARING HIGH: The

view up to the city

from the Tajo gorge

and (top) a typical

town scene

HERE are few places in the world where beer with an army you can drink general stands all general … and even fewer where the Ronda, however, the rounds! Celebrating a recent is one of those places. bar El Porton, an olé promotion with friends in quintessential away from Spain’s ish Legionnaire Carlos oldest bullring After introducing me Velo is eager to include me in - Spanthe party. quail eggs - Carlos to the town’s signature tapa - jamon and Iraq, Afghanistan (above) regales me with tales from the ‘best place in and Bosnia before explaining why tours to Ronda is “I have been all the world’. over the world and says, taking a swig seen many things,” he back into his face. from his cana and pushing his glasses “But Ronda is the been to.” best place I have ever Originally from Madrid, ago when he joined Carlos moved to Ronda some its two national basesthe Spanish Legion, which has35 years one of here, counting on naires at present. around 800 legion“The quality of life in Ronda is like nowhere can live like a gentleman here, in Madrid I else in Spain. I everyone else. would just be like “Everything is affordable, if you like you ing from tapas bar to tapas bar and youcan spend the day goin your pocket. will still have change “And the scenery is breathtaking,” he adds. “The walks Continues on

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EAGLE-EYED Olive Press readers helped snag one of Britain’s most wanted fugitives in Spain, just hours after he had been named. Following a tip off to the paper, suspected paedophile Matthew Sammon was dragged from his campervan in a dramatic nighttime raid and whisked away in an unmarked police car. Working closely with informant Daniel Reid, we were able to firstly track down Sammon to Fuengirola, then call in the Guardia Civil to arrest him. On the run for two years, Sammon - a blackbelt in Jujitsu was wanted in the UK for sharing indecent images of children. His seizure came just 10 hours after he was named in Operation Captura and is the quickest recorded arrest in the joint UK and Spanish police operation. “It was a fantastic result,” said Steve Reynolds, from the Nation-

WORDS AND PICS By Rob Horgan and Laurence Dollimore

al Crime Agency, who arrived at the scene after the arrest. “Well done Olive Press and thanks to the expat community for tipping us off, this is the reason we run these campaigns.” The dramatic day had started when Crimestoppers issued its annual list of most wanted fugitives in Torremolinos on Thursday morning. Leading to hundreds of press stories around the world and on national television, the hunt was immediately on. But, it was to popular local newspaper the Olive Press that expat plasterer Reid, 40, reached out to, trusting us to ‘do the job properly’. In a series of Facebook messages, he announced that Sammon, 45, had worked for him

SUCCESS: Reid, Horgan, Reynolds and Brunt as a labourer and was currently living in a campervan around the Mijas and Fuengirola area.

Within an hour, the Olive Press team scrambled to Fuengirola, learning from another builder that he was currently camped out at the feria ground. After a day working nearby, the Londoner duly arrived in his English-plated cream Moncayo campervan. Parking up, he looked relaxed as he took his dog for a walk around the feria ground and spoke with neighbours. Once identified, we called the Guardia Civil and Crimestoppers and so began a tense threehour waiting game, with Reid sitting in the car beside us. Sky News crime reporter Martin Brunt was soon there too. Eventually, as night had well and truly fell, an unmarked black BMW arrived and two plain clothes detectives swiftly moved in for the arrest, confiscating his passport and phone. Frisking him at the side of the

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November 26th - December 9th

ACCUSED: Martinez-Echevarria in Marbella and (inset) legal letter insist any firm offering them will ‘be penalised’. Marbella lawyer Alex Radford from My Lawyer in Spain, believes the ruling is ‘great news for honest and independent law firms’. “This action is long overdue as there are many firms who have been involved in this unfair practice for far too long,” he added. Meanwhile, fellow lawyer Ramon Pelayo added: “The ruling is highly significant in that it stamps out a corruption that has distorted free competition. “It puts an end to the unfair practices that have gravely harmed the interests of clients.” He added: “The true relevance of this ruling will depend on measures enforced by the Bar Association in the future. “It is great that the Olive Press has been so forward in helping to bring this bad practice into the public arena” Estate agents and law firms are now being encouraged to report any suspected malpractice to the Malaga Bar Association. To join the Olive Press ‘K.O. the kickbacks’ campaign email newsdesk@theolivepress.es

K.O the kickbacks

car, Sammon covered his face and remained silent when questioned by the Olive Press. He was then bundled into the BMW and taken to Madrid to be fingerprinted and prepared for extradition. Following the arrest, father-oftwo Reid said he was ‘relieved’ to see Sammon taken away. “As soon as I saw his face among the most wanted I felt sick,” said Reid, from Blackpool. “I let him hang around my children, we took him in with open arms and at first were none the wiser. “But we always thought he was a bit weird, he’s a real loner and never talks about his family. “He creeped my family out so much that I fired him.” Incredibly, police did not take any evidence from his campervan including his computer and other

Ten years ANTHONYS of the O ve Press a ready It on y seems ke yesterday I p cked up one of my first cop es and thought WOW! F na y a Costa de So newspaper that s not afra d to d g deep nto ssues that so many others wou d find too taboo and hot to touch Here s to a fantast c and prosperous first ten years and hop ng for ust as fabu ous and successfu fu ture PAGE 19

claims the association’s rulings are ‘void’ until the case is resolved. It comes just months after the Olive Press launched a campaign exposing the practice of lawyers giving agents ‘backhanders’ of up to 20% for working on conveyancing deals. Some 25 legal firms, estate agents and lobbying groups have already publicly backed the campaign, which is gathering speed. The Olive Press understands at least two other major legal firms and up to complaint against the director for a dozen smaller ones have allegedly misappropriating €600,000 and been taking backhanders. This is despite a national code of practice stating that ‘a lawyer may never pay, demand or accept, commissions, or other monies from another lawyer, or any other person for having sent a client or The flotilla was attempting to break recommending future customers’. an Israeli blockade and reach the Despite the law, no legal firm has yet war-stricken Palestinian city of Gaza been found guilty of paying backwith humanitarian aid and construchanders. tion materials. However, both the Malaga Bar AssociHowever, the Israeli Defence Force ation and the Andalucian lawyers asstormed the main civilian vessel and ten sociation (CADECA) have now ruled of the activists on board died in the melee. that kickbacks are ‘absolutely forbidAt the time, Netanyahu defended the den’ by Spanish and European rules. killings on grounds of self-defence. In a landmark joint statement, they

EXCLUSIVE By Rob Horgan

missions’ in a legal dossier - seen by the Olive Press. Meanwhile, the firm strongly denies the allegation and is contesting the association’s credibility. It is also taking legal action against one of its directors. Martinez-Echevarria’s attorney Antonio Torrecillas has filed a criminal

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An Olive Press probe to stop the bent practice of agents giving work to lawyers if they agree to kickbacks resulted in various law firms being investigated by the Malaga bar association

An exposee by the Olive Press revealed how a trio of sick game hunters used a Cordoba estate to shoot tigers bought from nearby zoos and circuses

Since day one, the Olive Press campaigned against the plans to rip up 100s of oak trees for a golf course in Ronda. Nine

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HE is one of the richest, most controversial men in the world and – it seems – somewhat the wine buff. Russian president Vladimir Putin is planting his very own vineyard at the multimillion euro home he is developing in the hills above Marbella, it can be revealed. Olive Press sources insist that the Russian gourmet, 62, has dug 25 plants from Spain’s top bodega Pingus into a series of terraces around the mansion, in Benahavis. In a huge mega-deal he has also contracted the vineyard’s owner Danish oenologist Peter Sisseck to oversee production of the wine. The wine will be produced in two huge underground cel-

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Lawyers in the dock