Fisherman’s hat, shirtless and completely upside down, holding on to rings. Scottish James Clatcher, 55, did not expect that three Civil Guard officers would surprise him just as he was practicing calisthenics on a beach in Nerja (Málaga, 22,176 inhabitants) to arrest him. It was on May 21 and he had already been living in the Malaga town for several months and was living a completely normal life despite the fact that he knew he was wanted by the justice system. The man had vanished from Scotland in 2022 when he was awaiting trial accused of two sexual assaults in his country. “He was not hiding too much,” say sources from the investigation, surprised because the now arrested man is very recognizable due to a tattoo on his face and many others that he has along his body.
Clatcher had disappeared under strange circumstances in Scotland. In 2022, his Suzuki car was found abandoned on the shore of a lake in the town of Arrochar, in the centre of the country. The police authorities launched an investigation to find out what had happened and determined that his disappearance had been voluntary. They had arguments. The man had been arrested months earlier accused of sexually assaulting two women in 2019 and 2020 whom he had met through a dating app. After his arrest, he had given guarantees to the courts that he would not leave the country until the trial was held, but before sitting in the dock he disappeared. The last time he was seen was on May 30 of that year in Airdrie, a town near Glasgow. No one knew where he had gone since then, but some time later he would reach the eastern Costa del Sol.
Last April, the National Crime Agency (NCA) alerted the Guardia Civil that the man could be in Nerja and that he was classified as dangerous. The public agency periodically publishes photographs of the most wanted subjects in the United Kingdom and distributes them to the press. Due to the large British colony settled on the Malaga coast and the fact that this is usually a hiding place for fugitives from justice, it also makes a point of getting information to the area. An anonymous person recognised him and called the NCA, who later informed the Spanish authorities. The source said that the fugitive did a lot of sport.
The Guardia Civil’s Fugitives from Justice team then began an investigation. They discovered that Clatcher had worked as a gym instructor in his country and they monitored the sports centres in the town. They also found a very active group on social media whose members held public meetings to practice sports. “They went running in groups, did exercises together and things like that,” say sources in the case. At the end of last spring, the agents went to Nerja to further refine their work and began to carry out surveillance. “We saw that he led a fairly normal life and that he mixed with the local community,” add sources from the Fugitives from Justice Group of the Central Operative Unit of the Guardia Civil who have directed the case with the support of the Scottish police.
On the morning of May 21, investigators found the individual practicing calisthenics on one of the town’s beaches. They took the opportunity to surprise him. Three officers handcuffed him on the sand. He was later placed at the disposal of the Central Court of Instruction number 3 of the National Court, where he was ordered to be sent to prison pending extradition to the United Kingdom.
The 016 telephone line serves victims of gender violence and their families or surroundings 24 hours a day, every day of the year. The number is not recorded on the telephone bill, but the call must be deleted from the device. You can also contact them via email. [email protected] and by WhatsApp at 600 000 016.
#Scottish #fugitive #arrested #Nerja #accused #rapes #country
