Lisa Brown murder suspect Simon Corner to be freed after judge in Spain ‘freezes’ case

A JUDGE in Spain has sensationally shelved the case against prime suspect Simon Corner in the Lisa Brown murder case at the request of state prosecutors.

Judge Garcia Ramila said, “This court has serious doubts Simon Corner is the person responsible for the crimes of homicide or unlawful detention being investigated.”

The shock move means that 35-year-old Corner will not now be extradited to Spain and will be set free from the London prison cell where he has been held since his arrest last week at Heathrow Airport on a European Arrest Warrant.

In a ten-page written ruling, the judge insisted he was legally obliged to take into account the “lack of concrete proof” pointing towards Corner’s involvement in Lisa’s disappearance.

He also said he was taking into account the claim of a witness who insisted she saw the missing Scot on November 6, 2015.

Five other people who were under investigation on suspicion of obstruction of justice have also had their bail conditions lifted. by the same Spanish judge.

Scottish mum-of-one Lisa, who was 32 when she vanished, was last seen at her home in Guadiaro near San Roque on November 4, 2015.

The alarm was raised when she failed to collect son Marco, then aged eight, from school.

Investigators have said they believed a ‘violent episode’ had taken place prior to her disappearance.

Originally from Alexandria in Dumbartonshire, Lisa worked in Gibraltar and detectives suspect that she was killed, but her body has never been found.

Liverpool-born yacht dealer Corner was held in Denmark on a European Arrest Warrant and extradited to Spain after fleeing the country in the wake of Lisa’s disappearance.

Last April Corner was freed from an Algeciras prison on bail but he reportedly broke the terms of his agreement by failing to present himself at a Costa del Sol police station last month.

He was reportedly born Dean Woods and changed his name after repeated brushes with British police, but he has to date maintained his innocence in the case.

Only last month a new appeal for information on the disappearance of Lisa was launched on the Costa del Sol.

The appeal was supported by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Spanish authorities and is backed up by a reward of up to £100,000 from the family.

Simon Manley, British Ambassador to Spain appeared at the press conference at Los Barrios alongside Craig Douglas, brother of Lisa Brown and Roger Critchell, Director of Operations, Crimestoppers.

Craig Douglas, Ms Brown’s brother, said their family believes that there is a ‘wall of silence’ among the English-speaking community in southern Spain over his sister’s disappearance.

He said, “We are sure that people know what happened and ask them to think of a little boy who asks every night when his Mummy is coming home. We also hope that the reward might persuade people to tell us what happened.”

Those with information can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 and 900 555 111 in Spain or via the web form at https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information-online/.

The reward will be paid out to any providing substantial information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible or results in identifying the whereabouts of the body. The reward will be valid for six months dating from March 23, 2018.