Wanninkhof case
Encyclopedia
The so-called Wanninkhof case happened in southern Spain
with the murder in 1999 of 19 year old Rocío Wanninkhof. After a jury trial conducted in a very charged atmosphere convicted Dolores Vazquez, a friend of her mother, of the murder, new DNA evidence appeared which proved the true killer was Tony Alexander King, an English
expatriate.
.
At about 9:30 PM she said she would go home to take a shower and agreed to meet him again later at the fair in Fuengirola
. After this she was not seen again.
The next day her mother told her other daughter, Rosa, to go to ask Antonio where Rocío might be. Antonio said he had not gone to the fair the previous night because he fell asleep but that he knew some of her friends had seen her there so he imagined she had just spent the night with one of her friends.
The mother was restless and decided to go out for a walk during which she found blood and clothes which apparently belonged to her daughter Rocío. She immediately notified the police, who cordoned off the area and a search began but Rocío could not be found.
After more than three weeks, on 2 November, the body of Rocío was found in a different place than where she had been attacked and murdered. The criminal had attempted to burn the body so that it was quite damaged and it could not later be determined if she had been sexually attacked but it was determined that she had been stabbed once in the chest and eight times in the back.
Dolores Vázquez became the prime suspect and she was questioned repeatedly but never admitted any wrongdoing. To the contrary, she proved she had been at home taking care of her mother and of her niece and had made some phone calls which were proven by the phone company.
But the murder had provoked alarm in the local people who demanded a quick resolution and the police indicted Dolores.
and feeding frenzy.
Dolores appealed and the higher court agreed and declared the case should be retried.
While she was in prison awaiting her new trial, in August 2003, there was a similar crime when 17 year-old Sonia Carabantes disappeared. In their investigation of this case the police discovered DNA which matched DNA found at the scene of the murder of Rocío. A woman soon told police that she suspected her ex-husband and when the police questioned him it was soon discovered that it was, indeed, his DNA. His name was Tony Alexander King and he was an English expat who, with his wife and daughter had come to live in southern Spain. It turned out he had a long criminal history and had served time in England for sexual crimes before changing his name and settling in Spain.
Dolores' upcoming trial was first suspended and then the case was closed and she was set free having been 17 months in prison.
In 2005 Tony Alexander King was sentenced to 36 years in prison for the death of Sonia Carabantes and to an additional seven years for an unrelated sexual attack he had committed. In 2006 he was found guilty of the death of Rocío Wanninkhof and was sentenced to 19 years in prison for that crime.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
with the murder in 1999 of 19 year old Rocío Wanninkhof. After a jury trial conducted in a very charged atmosphere convicted Dolores Vazquez, a friend of her mother, of the murder, new DNA evidence appeared which proved the true killer was Tony Alexander King, an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
expatriate.
The Crime
The afternoon of 9 October 1999, 19 year-old Rocío Wanninkhof said goodbye to her mother, Alicia Hornos, and left her home to go visit her boyfriend, Antonio José Jurado, who lived nearby in the town of Mijas, Málaga in AndalusiaAndalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
.
At about 9:30 PM she said she would go home to take a shower and agreed to meet him again later at the fair in Fuengirola
Fuengirola
Fuengirola, in ancient times known as Suel and then Suhayl, is a large town and municipality on the Costa del Sol in the province of Málaga, autonomous community of Andalusia in southern Spain. It is a major tourist resort, with more than 8 km of beaches, and home to a mediæval Moorish fortress...
. After this she was not seen again.
The next day her mother told her other daughter, Rosa, to go to ask Antonio where Rocío might be. Antonio said he had not gone to the fair the previous night because he fell asleep but that he knew some of her friends had seen her there so he imagined she had just spent the night with one of her friends.
The mother was restless and decided to go out for a walk during which she found blood and clothes which apparently belonged to her daughter Rocío. She immediately notified the police, who cordoned off the area and a search began but Rocío could not be found.
Police Investigation
The police centered their suspicions on six suspects, the boyfriend Antonio being the prime suspect but after questioning he was cleared. Another suspect was Dolores Vázquez who had been a close friend and lover of Alicia, the mother. Her calls were monitored and she was under surveillance.After more than three weeks, on 2 November, the body of Rocío was found in a different place than where she had been attacked and murdered. The criminal had attempted to burn the body so that it was quite damaged and it could not later be determined if she had been sexually attacked but it was determined that she had been stabbed once in the chest and eight times in the back.
Dolores Vázquez became the prime suspect and she was questioned repeatedly but never admitted any wrongdoing. To the contrary, she proved she had been at home taking care of her mother and of her niece and had made some phone calls which were proven by the phone company.
But the murder had provoked alarm in the local people who demanded a quick resolution and the police indicted Dolores.
Trial
The trial was done with a popular jury which is a system with no tradition in Spain and which is being newly implemented. So far several jury trials in Spain have led to scandalous verdicts. Most factual evidence exculpated her but the prosecutor relied heavily in attacking the character of Dolores and her lesbian relationship with Rocío's mother Alicia. The judge did not intervene to curb such misconduct. In the end the verdict repeated word for word the prosecutor's allegations and found Dolores guilty of the murder of Rocío. All this was conducted in the middle of a media circusMedia circus
Media circus is a colloquial metaphor, or idiom, describing a news event where the media coverage is perceived to be out of proportion to the event being covered, such as the number of reporters at the scene, the amount of news media published or broadcast, and the level of media hype...
and feeding frenzy.
Dolores appealed and the higher court agreed and declared the case should be retried.
While she was in prison awaiting her new trial, in August 2003, there was a similar crime when 17 year-old Sonia Carabantes disappeared. In their investigation of this case the police discovered DNA which matched DNA found at the scene of the murder of Rocío. A woman soon told police that she suspected her ex-husband and when the police questioned him it was soon discovered that it was, indeed, his DNA. His name was Tony Alexander King and he was an English expat who, with his wife and daughter had come to live in southern Spain. It turned out he had a long criminal history and had served time in England for sexual crimes before changing his name and settling in Spain.
Dolores' upcoming trial was first suspended and then the case was closed and she was set free having been 17 months in prison.
In 2005 Tony Alexander King was sentenced to 36 years in prison for the death of Sonia Carabantes and to an additional seven years for an unrelated sexual attack he had committed. In 2006 he was found guilty of the death of Rocío Wanninkhof and was sentenced to 19 years in prison for that crime.