This is the moment three British men were dramatically arrested over an alleged Costa del Sol kidnap plot involving a UK cryptocurrency broker.
Spanish police released footage today showing the moment they surrounded an Audi in which the trio tried to flee – after their victim managed to escape before officers cuffed the suspects on the ground at gunpoint.
The men had taken a trader hostage and demanded 30,000 euros (£25,000) for his release after a chance meeting in Marbella led to him accepting an invite to an apartment in the nearby resort of Estepona.
That was where the kidnappers were thought to have been temporarily living.
The 34-year-old Hindi-speaking target got away by pretending to phone a customer he said had to give him half a code needed for accessing a crypto wallet.
He instead called a friend in London, explaining how he was being held against his will in language his captors did not understand.
His friend alerted the victim’s mother, who told police what was happening – sparking an operation to locate the property where he was being held, which investigators initially only knew was in the Estepona area.
Heavily-armed officers managed to track down the apartment and were preparing to call in specialist reinforcements, when the kidnapped man took advantage of a momentary lapse in concentration by his abductors to escape.
One suspect was looking at his mobile when he ran and jumped more than 30ft from a balcony, breaking his ankles in the process.
The footage now released by police released shows officers moving in as the kidnappers tried to speed off in their Audi upon realising their attempts to earn quick money had been frustrated.
Officers found more than £8,000, in euros, during a search of the apartment – as well as two guns, three knives and 25g of pink cocaine.
The three arrested Britons, who have not been named, have all been remanded to prison following a court appearance.
Police have now gone public with details about the operation to resolve the Costa kidnap, in an seven-hour mission codenamed Operation Espino.
A spokesman for the National Police in Malaga said: ‘Three men have arrested on suspicion of kidnap, wounding, membership of a criminal organisation, unlawful weapons possession and drugs trafficking.
‘They are now in prison following a court appearance. The investigation began when officers were informed about the kidnap on February 1.
‘Detectives managed to locate the residential estate where they believed the victim was being held.
‘During the police operation established to locate the apartment, officers saw several nervous-looking men going to and fro between the inside of the property and an outside terrace.
‘Moments later they witnessed another man who turned out to be the kidnap victim jumping from the terrace to the ground.
‘He was taken to hospital so he could be treated for the injuries he suffered in the fall. The three suspects were arrested as they tried to get away in a high-powered vehicle.
‘Two firearms hidden in kitchen cupboards, almost 10,000 euros, a money -counting machine, three knives including one butterfly knife, two designer watches and 25g of pink cocaine as well as a weighing scale were found during a search of the apartment.’
Police sources confirmed all the arrested men were British.
The kidnap trio had tied their victim up and threatened to kill him during his ordeal unless he accessed his clients’ crypto wallets so he could pay them to regain his freedom.
They had got talking during a chance meeting at a Marbella hotel a fortnight earlier – and ended up having a meal together the day of the kidnap.
The victim then accepted an invite to drinks afterwards at the property in Estepona where he ended up being held hostage.
Police suspect they planned their crime after the British trader told them what he did for a living – and they realised he was earning well and had access to large amounts of cryptocurrency.
Only one of the detainees was known to police in Spain, but all three are believed to have criminal records in the UK for weapons possession and drugs offences.