UK family accused of assault in Fuerteventura sunbed row

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The UK tourists allegedly attacked a family at a Canary Island poolside resort

UK family accused of assault in Fuerteventura sunbed row

This summer in Spain has been somewhat marred by the so-called umbrella wars, battles between locals and tourists trying to nab the best spots on the beach and beside the pool by staking their claim on sun loungers and deck chairs.

Now the battle has spread to the Canary Islands, where a Spanish family was allegedly attacked by a group of UK holidaymakers at a Fuerteventura poolside resort.

According to one of the Spaniards, who has been named only as Santiago, the unfortunate altercation occurred while he was holidaying at the island hotel with his wife and two daughters. He noticed on arrival, he later said, that weren’t nearly enough sunbeds around the pool to accommodate all the guests.

After breakfast, Santiago decided to take a siesta and his family hit the pool. His wife had just sat on an empty sun lounger when she was approached by two British men, who began to shout at her, insisting that the chair she was sitting on was theirs.

“To kick her off it, one of them overturned the lounger, which fell on her foot,” Santiago claims. His wife and daughters, who don’t speak English, weren’t sure what was happening and were understandably frightened, but the concerned husband said that other guests expressed their outrage at this treatment.

One of Santiago’s terrified daughters sent him a WhatsApp message reading: “Dad, come down, they are hitting Mom,” and by the time he arrived, Guardia Civil officers were already at the poolside. They took statements from the family, their alleged attackers and the lifeguard.

After the incident, the family from Albacete decided not to risk running into the Britons again and contacted their travel agency to move hotels.

“We were terrified,” Santiago explained. “In fact, we had to leave because we were afraid that they would hit us or something.”

Furthermore, he has criticised the resort for failing to “take action against the attackers,” believing that staff treated them with “contempt.”

Now, Santiago plans to report the incident at the hotel and the injuries inflicted on his wife.

In other news: British man, 40, seriously injured in fatal stabbing in Costa Blanca

Image: Freepik

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