One Of UK's Most Wanted Arrested In Spain

A convicted British sex offender has been arrested in Spain, hours after police named him on a most wanted list.

Michael McCartney, 78, was detained in Alicante after the list of "unlucky 13" suspects accused of attempted murder, drug smuggling and child abuse was disclosed.

McCartney, from Letchworth, was convicted of abusing three boys. He groomed them by buying them expensive gifts before committing sex crimes.

He was found guilty of nine counts of indecent assault, indecency with a child and inciting sexual activity involving penetration in March 2013, and failed to attend court the following month for sentencing.

A National Crime Agency (NCA) spokesman said: "Acting on intelligence, officers from the Spanish National Police arrested convicted sex offender Michael McCartney at an address in Alicante at around 4.30pm.

"He will now appear before a Spanish court where extradition proceedings will begin."

Full details of the list of fugitives thought to be hiding in Spain were given by the charity Crimestoppers, the NCA and Spanish police in Madrid this morning.

Another of the 13 is Ian Stanton, 42, from Liverpool, who is accused of being the mastermind of a gang that smuggled more than 400kg of cocaine to the UK hidden in a shipment of Argentinian beef.

The drugs were found at Tilbury docks in Essex in May, and the shipment was due to be delivered to a cold-storage company in Wigan.

He has links to Merseyside - specifically Crosby, Kirkby and Maghull - but also London, the Netherlands and Spain.

Robert Mortby is suspected of attempted murder over an attack on a man outside a pub in Elephant and Castle, south London.

The victim was drinking at the Rose and Crown in July last year when he was hit over the head with a bottle and shot three times.

Mortby, 26, from London, is suspected of being one of his two attackers.

The release of the list was the eighth appeal of its kind run under Operation Captura.

The initiative, targeting those fugitives thought to have fled to Spain, was launched in 2006 and so far has seen 54 out of 63 suspects caught.

Hank Cole, from the NCA, told Sky News: "They are a mixture of serious criminals ranging from alleged sex offenders, those who've committed or attempted to commit murder, and significant drug traffickers.

"So these are the worst or most serious criminals that the National Crime Agency is looking to capture.

"Historically Spain had no extradition treaty to the UK so it was seen as a safe haven for UK criminals. Since then the law has changed and we've successfully extradited large numbers of UK criminals back to the UK."

Crimestoppers founder Lord Ashcroft said: "Despite our success so far, there are still a number of dangerous criminals who see Spain as a safe haven to hide from their past. But with the support of the Spanish and UK public, we can hunt them out and bring them to justice."