A Spanish father separated from the mother of his children kidnapped his two young daughters. The body of one of them was found at the bottom of the ocean, weighted down by an anchor.
At the end of April, a father abducted his two daughters on the Spanish island of Tenerife. Separated from their mother Beatriz, he took Olivia, 6, and Anna, 1, with him leaving a message “farewell” addressed to his ex-partner, reports AFP. Since then, both the children and the man have been reported missing. The body of the elder has just been found at the bottom of the sea, a spokesperson for the Guardia Civil, the Spanish equivalent of the French gendarmerie, told the press agency.
The day after the kidnapping of the two girls, a boat belonging to their father and Anna’s car seat were found adrift off the coast of Tenerife. The authorities then launched searches around this island in the Canary Islands archipelago and, this Thursday, a body was found at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. It was identified as Olivia’s and it was discovered 1000 meters deep, locked in a bag weighted by the anchor of the father’s boat.
After the discovery of Olivia’s body, the search continues to find her father and her little sister, and all of Spain is in shock. “I cannot imagine the pain of the mother of little Anna and Olivia, who disappeared in Tenerife, at the terrible news we have just heard”Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Twitter. For Irene Moreno, Minister of Equality, “There are no words to accompany Beatriz in this moment of terrible pain. This violence against mothers to strike where it hurts the most is a matter of state.”
Since 2013, 39 minors have been murdered in Spain by their father, their mother’s companions or ex-companions, AFP said, citing a figure from the Spanish government on gender violence. Following the discovery of Olivia’s body, several feminist groups called for demonstrations on Friday evening to denounce this crime and the increase in feminicides in the country since the beginning of the year despite the numerous measures of the government against male chauvinist violence.