GUNNED DOWN: Thief shot dead during burglary attempt in Mallorca

A 25-YEAR-OLD has died in hospital after being shot while he and others allegedly attempted to rob thousands of euros from a villa in Porreres.

Three other men have since been arrested and held in connection with the robbery which saw the group allegedly demand money from the elderly owner of the house. Freddy EB, the twin of the man shot, reportedly handed himself in.

Pau Rigo, the 77-year-old homeowner, reportedly shot the 25-year-old at point blank range with a shotgun. 

He said he acted in self defence and feared for his life, according to Spanish media.

Dozens of police officers and a helicopter searched for the accused men for hours after authorities were first alerted to what had happened at the house.

The Guardia Civil have been attempting to establish the course of events from accounts they have gathered so far in their investigations.

Local Police said events began at around 9am on Saturday when the householder and businessman Pau Rigo was outside his home near the road to s’Olivar.

Two of the accused reportedly jumped him and took him inside the house where they beat him and then locked him in a room with his wife.

The robbers demanded he hand over money from a safe. Local Police said they were targeted because the man had thousands in coins from his slot machine business.

Rigo handed over around €10,000 but the group demanded he give them more, according to the son of the family.

The 77-year-old told the robbers he was going to get them more money. He returned with a shotgun and fired at Mauricio EB, a Colombian member of the gang who bled heavily and suffered severe abdominal trauma as a result.

The remaining accused men fled the house after which Rigo alerted the emergency services and the security company which ran its alarm system.

Local Police from Porreres arrived shortly after and they were joined by two ambulances who took the wounded 25-year-old to hospital for an emergency operation. He reportedly died at around 2.30pm later that day.

Rigo and his wife were also taken to hospital and he was treated for injuries caused by the beating. The woman reportedly suffered a nervous breakdown.

Local Police launched a major operation to locate the robbers after they had fled, believing that they were hiding in the area. Their efforts were ended hours later after deciding the accused were elsewhere.

Mark RV, 58 and Jose Antonio SL, 44 were arrested and are suspected to have been among those involved in the attempted robbery. Freddy EB has turned himself into police. They appeared in court for initial hearings in Manacor yesterday (Wednesday).

Criminal lawyers have reportedly said the 77-year-old may be able to argue he was acting in self defence should he be taken to court.

The court would have to determine whether the measures were a proportionate response in the circumstances. 

If they were deemed to be so then Rigo would be exempt from criminal proceedings and would not be required to pay compensation to the victim’s family, they added. 

The investigation remains open as police are set to work to determine if those arrested were responsible for other robberies that have been reported in the area.