Four Spanish police in Majorca are in the dock for ‘torturing’ two British tourists.
Four members of Spain’s Civil Guard face imprisonment if convicted of assaulting the holidaymakers after they were in custody following a fight.
Public prosecutors in Majorca are pressing for a combined 26 year sentence for a sergeant and three officers who are said to have intimidated and attacked the two detainees in 2009.
The two men had been arrested after a brawl in a bar on the island during which one of the men allegedly knocked out the off-duty sergeant, according to Spain’s El País.
Once in custody, prosecutors say that all four police brutally attacked the men, beating them with a truncheon and bare fists. The two sustained arm fractures, bruising and injuries to their faces. Twice during the night of their arrest they had to be taken to hospital.
The sergeant is also accused of psychological torture, allegedly staring at one of the captive men inside the cell until he left him ‘in a state of panic’.
The Civil Guard captain denied that his officers were responsible and argued either other officers had harmed the detainees or that the wounds were self-inflicted.
He claimed that one of the detainees had hurt himself during arrest and later inside the cell. He added that one managed to escape from the patrol car while in handcuffs, and fell and hit his face.
Internal investigators reject this description of events, saying the injuries had been too severe.
The Civil Guards also filed their own complaint against the Brits, who were found guilty of assault and disobedience.
If convicted, the sergeant could be imprisoned for 11 years while the three officers under his command could be given sentences of five years.
Majorca prosecutor Julio Cano said: “Trust in the right to a defence is abolished if one cannot trust in the actions of the police.”
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