Brit in court accused of murdering Irish charity worker in Costa del Sol pub
A BRIT chef has appeared in court after being arrested on suspicion of murdering an Irish charity worker in an unprovoked attack in a Costa del Sol pub. Dad-of-two Leigh Anthony Gardiner, 49, was marched into court in the resort of Fuengirola in handcuffs by two police officers just before 9.30am this morning and brought back out again around two hours later. The hearing took place in private as is normal in Spain where only trials are open to the press and public. And it was not immediately clear if he had agreed to be quizzed by an investigating judge or declined to answer questions. Gardiner was remanded in prison pending an ongoing criminal probe. A court official confirmed: “Fuengirola Court of Investigation Number Two, acting as a duty court and at the request of state prosecutors, has ordered the remand in prison of the man arrested in the early hours of yesterday morning following the death of a man in the town. “He is being investigated at this stage on suspicion of a crime of murder.” The expat, a chef at a well-known holiday resort on the Costa del Sol who lives in Mijas near Fuengirola, bowed his head and said nothing as he was led away. ARREST Gardiner was arrested in the early hours of yesterday morning after allegedly attacking John with two broken bottles while he was using the loo at the Pogs Old Irish Rock Pub. Police said the Irishman was attacked after politely asking the suspect to stop bothering his wife and the partner of a friend he was with. Well-placed sources said witnesses had told the police the dead man was targeted with two broken beer bottles as he was relieving himself and had no chance to defend himself as he was stabbed several times in the neck and body. One of the blows is believed to have severed his jugular vein. Police who happened to be passing by the pub where the incident occurred just before 2am yesterday morning tried to save the tourist’s life but he bled to death in front of them. He was on holiday with his wife Caroline McGuigan, founder of charity Suicide or Survive, and their two children Conor, 21, and 18-year-old Amy who were not in the pub at the time. John, a qualified acupuncturist who trained in China, was on the board of his wife’s charity. A source close to the probe said the suspect had no criminal record in Spain and was a chef at a well-known Costa del Sol hotel resort and was on his own for a few days because his wife and kids had gone on a foreign holiday. A neighbour of the dead man in Shankill, Dublin, described him as a “fantastic, friendly man and a gentle giant.” The neighbour said: “He’d do anything for you. If the weather was bad, he would often knock in here to see if I needed anything in the shop.” Formal charges in Spain are not laid until shortly before trial. The suspect is thought to have been officially declared an ‘investigado’ after his court appearance, which literally means he is being formally investigated on suspicion of a crime.