A man from the UK was hospitalized in Spain after being attacked with a screwdriver by a passerby who demanded a cigarette from him. The victim, identified as Scottish, sustained a punctured lung during the assault at Plaza de Ayuntamiento in Valencia’s city center early on Saturday. Police arrested a 45-year-old man, believed to have a criminal record, at the scene following the incident.
The assault occurred when a woman, a Uruguayan citizen, who was with the victim, screamed for help, alerting nearby police officers. She informed the authorities that the assailant approached the man to ask for a cigarette, and upon refusal, he stabbed him with a screwdriver.
Reports from Las Provincias described the suspect as having “altered mental faculties.” The victim was taken to Doctor Peset University Hospital in Valencia, and his current medical status is undisclosed.
In a separate incident, a man in his 20s was stabbed in the neck at Palma Airport in Mallorca without a clear motive. The victim was attacked while waiting for a friend to arrive at the airport. The assailant approached him, inquired about his phone, and without warning, stabbed him in the neck with a knife.
Local sources mentioned that a suspect was swiftly apprehended within the airport premises, while the victim received immediate medical attention from SAMU 061 emergency services. He was stabilized on-site and later transferred to a hospital for specialized treatment.
An informed source indicated that the suspect had no recollection of the violent event, stating that he reacted impulsively after believing his phone had been stolen. The suspect, reportedly a rough sleeper at Palma Airport, mistakenly confronted the victim, an Argentinian resident, who had come to pick up a family member and had no prior acquaintance with the attacker.