Two young men, aged 19 and 21, intended to establish a new existence in France with the funds they planned to steal from the 69-year-old retiree stepfather of one of them in Elche. In September 2023, the perpetrators murdered the victim with the intention of stealing the money they believed he was saving. The National Police foiled their plans in Tarragona before they left the country. Subsequently, the Court has sentenced the stepson to 25 years in prison and his friend to 22 years and six months in prison. Consequently, their future is confined to a prison cell.
Carlos L. and Iván S. were scheduled to be tried in a jury hearing at the Elche High Court this September. However, the defence attorneys reached a settlement with the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the private prosecution, which was led by lawyer Aitor Prieto Razquin on behalf of the victim’s wife and the mother of one of the defendants. In exchange for the guilty confessions of both defendants, the agreement reduced the sentences to just under 18 years, despite the fact that the charges sought a total sentences of 65 years in prison.
In addition to the prison sentences for murder, robbery with violence in an inhabited house, fraud, and vehicle theft, the two convicted men are required to pay €110,000 plus interest to the deceased’s wife, as per the sentence imposed by the Court last month. Additionally, the stepson was ordered to perform 80 days of community service for operating the vehicle that he had stolen from his stepfather without a valid licence.
Carlos L. lived with the victim, Manuel, a 69-year-old retiree who served as a pharmacy assistant in downtown Elche. Their relationship was unfavourable due to the young man’s history of burglaries, as they resided on a mezzanine floor on Calle Alfredo Sánchez Torres. Manuel’s presence within the residence was required for the young man to gain entry, as he did not possess home keys. Manuel was also required to secure the door in order to prevent him from entering all of the rooms in the house.
Carlos, who believed that his stepfather had between 10,000 and 20,000 euros in the house, had a plan for the two defendants to assault Manuel in mid-September, take his money, and then depart for France to begin a new life.
On the afternoon of September 17th, 2023, the two defendants proceeded to the entrance of Manuel’s residence after establishing a date for their gruesome murder and plunder scheme. Carlos had taken a large kitchen knife (20.5 centimetres with a blade) from his residence and was carrying it prior to their departure. Additionally, they acquired a large rock weighing 1.6 kilogrammes. They awaited Manuel at the property, as they were aware of his schedule. Carlos was always outside, as he lacked the keys to the home, while Iván was inside the entrance. Upon his arrival at 10:30 p.m., the defendant’s stepfather was unaware. They repeatedly stabbed him in the neck because he continued to move after he collapsed to the ground, and Iván struck him on the head with the rock once he entered the entrance.
Together, the stepson and Manuel, who was incapacitated and injured, carried him upstairs after the stepson took the house keys. They confined him to the entrance area of the residence and subsequently removed all signs of blood. When Carlos realised that his stepfather was still alive, he proceeded to stab him in the neck multiple times, resulting in his death.
The body was covered with a blanket and the home was searched after the blood was cleaned up. The keys to Manuel’s car, his mobile phone, and his wallet, which contained money and bank cards, were all stolen. The two defendants departed for France, stopping at various locations to purchase food and fuel. Their downfall was precipitated by their use of the victim’s credit cards. On the morning of September 18th, the Elche police apprehended the suspects in the car park of a retail centre in Tarragona. The young men embarked on a new phase of life that they had not anticipated when Manuel was brutally assassinated.
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