Resident of Zalea, in Malaga province, shot dead and one woman arrested

The Guardia Civil are investigating the fatal shooting of a man that occurred in the hamlet of Zalea in the Malaga municipality of Pizarra on Monday afternoon.

The police have already arrested one suspect: a woman, who was allegedly trying to flee in a vehicle with her children when they caught her.

According to sources, the killing stemmed from prior disagreements that had manifested as threats and prompted a police response hours before the fatal incident.

The emergency services received an alert shortly before 2pm. Witnesses reported gunshosts on Calle Virgen del Pilar and a seriously injured person.

Upon arrival, the paramedics were unable to save the victim's life. His name was David and he was between 45 and 50 years old at the time of his death.

David died in the doorway of a neighbour's house. "I heard a gunshot, went to look out and when I opened the door, I saw him opening the gate and he collapsed," David's neighbour said.

He rushed to call the emergency services and told David not to fall asleep. Still in shock, he explained that David had taken his last breath within ten or 15 minutes. "I feel helpless because I couldn't do anything to save him," the victim's neighbour said.

The residents of this street in Zalea, where most of the homes are social housing and many have been occupied by squatters, said that David lived a few metres away, on another street. He was alone, although he had several children. His family lived between Pizarra and Malaga city.

Prior to his death, David had been fixing up a kiosk to start selling sweets and other food items.

When they arrived and searched the scene, the Guardia Civil found the suspected perpetrator. She was attempting to flee in a vehicle parked in front of her home, accompanied by several minors, presumably her children.

The police interrogated her at the station and recovered the weapon she allegedly used in the crime. The detainee remains in custody.

Locals said they didn't know the suspect well. She had lived there for years with her children, although she was originally from Jaén.

The night before the fatal incident, the Guardia Civil attended the same address due to an altercation. According to sources, the detainee called the emergency services twice on Sunday to report that she was receiving death threats.

This eventually led to a police intervention in the evening, but the Guardia Civil didn't find the person making the threats, allegedly the now deceased David.

Some neighbours said that the detainee had told the police that if he were to return, "she would shoot him".

The conflict resurfaced early Monday afternoon when the man allegedly returned to the woman's home. The confrontation reportedly escalated into a physical altercation during which the deceased was shot.

According to sources, a financial debt may have triggered the altercation and the subsequent murder.

The police are now investigating whether the deceased was carrying the weapon when he went to the detainee's home, with the intention of intimidating her. They are also not ruling out the possibility that the weapon belonged to her.

The police are monitoring the crime scene in order to prevent possible altercations between the opposing parties, while specialists from the scientific police remained until late in the afternoon inspecting the home and car of the suspect in search of traces to reconstruct the events.

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