Remand in custody for man accused of stabbing elderly woman in Ogíjares and setting fire to her home
A 27-year-old man has been remanded in custody after being accused of stabbing a 79-year-old woman in Ogíjares and setting fire to her house. He was arrested on Tuesday in Loja.
Arrested in Loja after stabbing elderly woman and staging her death in fire
According to ABC, the Investigation Section of Court of First Instance Number 4 in Granada ordered on Friday 22 May the remand in custody, without bail, of a 27-year-old man allegedly involved in the death of a 79-year-old woman in the Granada municipality of Ogíjares.
The incident occurred on the night of Sunday 17 May. Initially, authorities believed the victim had died as a result of a fire that broke out at her home, located in a residential area near the capital. However, a subsequent analysis by the Guardia Civil at the scene revealed that the woman had suffered a stab wound to the chest, a discovery that completely altered the course of the investigation.
The main working hypothesis suggests that the suspect inflicted the knife wound on the elderly woman—probably the cause of her death—and set fire to the house to conceal the crime. The plan failed: the body was not completely burned and the knife marks were clearly visible to investigators.
Security cameras installed in the surrounding area confirmed that the man had been at the location shortly before the fire broke out. After the incident, he fled and took refuge in Loja, approximately fifty kilometres from the scene. He was arrested on Tuesday afternoon; he remained in police custody until the court's decision on Friday. Some of the suspect's own family members even cooperated with the Guardia Civil to locate him.
Sources from the Guardia Civil have revealed that the detained man has a police record for previous complaints related to alleged domestic abuse against women, cases that are recorded in the VioGén system. His last partner, a 20-year-old and great-granddaughter of the deceased woman, had not filed a formal complaint against him, although family members of the young woman have stated that she was systematically abused.
Source: ABC