Conmen deny murder of house-hunting Britons; Couple killed after cash snatch.

Byline: BY JOHN-PAUL ROJAS Daily Post Correspondent

A COUPLE searching for their dream home in Spain were murdered by conmen who were only caught out after one of them tried to extract more money from their relatives, a court heard yesterday.

Car dealer Anthony O'Malley, 42, originally from Widnes, and Liverpool-born shop manager Linda O'Malley, 55, were a quiet and devoted couple who had looked forward to a happy and peaceful retirement in the sun.

But it turned to a nightmare when they met up with Venezuelans Jorge Real Sierra, 56, and brother-in-law Juan Velazquez Gonzalez, 40, posing as property vendors, the court in Alicante was told.

The couple, from Llangollen, North Wales, travelled to Benidorm on Spain's Costa Blanca in August, 2002, to look for their new home.

They showed interest in buying a villa from the two men but unbeknown to them, the men were only renting the property in Alcoy.

Instead, the men allegedly kidnapped the couple and kept them bound and gagged for several days.

They were then said to have forced Mr O'Malley to withdraw pounds 17,000 from his bank account before killing him and his wife.

Prosecutors said Mr O'Malley was asphyxiated while his wife died from shock. They were found buried under the floor of the villa's cellar six months later.

Real, who described himself in court as a marketing consultant, fraudulently used their credit cards to buy shoes, books, clothes and computer equipment, the court heard.

The total misappropriated by the pair, who both deny murder, totalled pounds 19,000.

The trial heard that police at first treated the disappearance of the O'Malleys as a missing persons inquiry.

It was only when Real allegedly contacted the National Missing Persons Helpline in Britain the following February that a murder hunt was launched.

He sent an email, signed "Felix", claiming he had information about the O'Malleys and could act as a hostage negotiator, all the while knowing they had been dead for months, it was claimed.

Detectives were immediately alerted and, following an exchange of emails, obtained a phone number for "Felix", which led them to Real.

After being arrested in March, he led police to the bodies and pinned the blame for the murders on Velazquez, according to police.

But in court he denied ever doing so, claiming he had no knowledge of the killings and had never met the O'Malleys.

"It's impossible I could have had anything to do with this," he said.

He said he did know Velazquez planned to sell the property but had nothing to do with it himself.

Real also dismissed the possibility that Velazquez, an ex-lifeguard, could have carried out the crime, saying: "He does not have the capacity to do it."

The younger man claimed to have planned the property scam with a mystery Briton called "Bradley", whom he met in a bar, but said he then went to Valencia and never met the O'Malleys.

When he was arrested, he was driving the missing Fiat Stylo car which the couple had hired, which he claimed was sold to him by Bradley.

Relatives of the O'Malleys sat just feet away from Real, a bulky, balding man in an ill-fitting grey suit, and his co-accused alongside him in a red shirt and jeans.

The hearing was delayed by 45 minutes because of Velazquez's late arrival.

Prosecutors have asked the panel of three judges, hearing the trial without a jury, to jail the men for more than 50 years each and to impose steep fines.

The trial continues today.

They were buried under the floor

CAPTION(S):

Relatives of Anthony and Linda O'Malley arrive at the Palace of Justice' Anthony and Linda O'Malley' and, right, Juan Velazquez Gonzale