The husband of a British woman arrested in a Spanish holiday resort on suspicion of murdering her two children was charged with 13 child sex offences in a UK court today, police said.
Martin Smith (45) was extradited to England from Spain and charged with six counts of raping a girl aged under 16, six counts of gross indecency and one of attempted rape.
His wife Lianne Smith (43) was arrested at a hotel in the Mediterranean resort of Lloret del Mar, 64 km northeast of Barcelona, over the deaths of her two children.
British police named them as Rebecca (5) and Daniel (11 months). They would not comment on reports the children had been suffocated.
Martin Smith was arrested on May 7th in Barcelona, two years after he failed to answer bail in connection with a range of sex offences, according to Crimestoppers, a police-backed charity that appeals for help in solving crimes.
He was named last September on a "most wanted" list of suspects sought by British police and believed to be living in Spain. Crimestoppers said the allegations against him dated from April 1995 to April 2005.
He was arrested and extradited as part of Operation Captura, a joint campaign by Spanish and British police to detain people in Spain who are suspected of committing crimes in Britain.
He appeared at Carlisle Magistrates Court in northeast England today after being extradited yesterday.
"During the court hearing it was disclosed that ... Smith's wife, 43-year-old Lianne Smith, has been arrested on suspicion of the murder of his two children," police in Cumbria said in a statement. "We are saddened by these tragic events and are supporting members of the extended family."
Police in Barcelona said they expected the children's mother to appear before a judge in Spain tomorrow. Her husband is due back in court in England on June 7th.
The results of postmortem examinations are expected today or tomorrow.
After her arrest, the mother was taken to her hotel room by police and an investigating judge to help them reconstruct events leading up to the children's deaths, El Mundo reported.
She was then transferred to a police station at Blanes, near Lloret, for questioning.
Reuters