A YOUNG woman thought to be an Irish or British tourist was fatally stabbed yesterday on Spain’s Costa Blanca.
The 20-year-old woman, who has not been named, died after being stabbed in the neck.
A young British man was arrested on suspicion of murder three hours later.
A spokesman for the Civil Guard, which was investigating, said: “The victim was stabbed in the neck and was already dead when we arrived at the scene.
“We are trying to establish her nationality as she could be either British or Irish,” the police spokesman said.
“We are trying to contact her family and are speaking to the British and Irish embassies,” he added.
Police said the detained man had “a relationship” with the victim and they were working to establish if they were boyfriend and girlfriend.
Police were called to a flat in Orihuela Costa, 35 miles south of Alicante, at 2.30pm after a neighbour reported hearing screaming.
They arrived to find the victim already dead and lying in a pool of blood.
No weapon was found at the scene and the suspect had already fled.
Detectives put out a description and licence plate of the suspect’s car to all forces, and a man was arrested at around 6pm about 100 miles up the coast in Oliva, near Valencia.
The police said “we believe the victim is a holidaymaker but the suspect lives in Spain”.
An autopsy will confirm the cause of death.
The detained man will make a statement to the Civil Guard and may then appear at a preliminary hearing at a court in Torrevieja.