Man Beheads Woman In Tenerife, Canary Islands Supermarket

[Guanche of Tenerife]

Man Beheads Woman In Tenerife, Canary Islands Supermarket



HAROLD HECKLE   05/13/11 04:50 PM ET

MADRID — A man beheaded a British woman in a random attack in a supermarket on the Spanish resort island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands on Friday, officials said.

The suspect, a homeless Bulgarian man with a police record identified as Deyan Valentinov, was captured by security guards after he ran out of the supermarket holding the head, authorities said. The man was then arrested.

In London, Britain's Foreign Office confirmed the victim was a U.K. national, saying "we are now seeking further information."

Regional Interior Ministry delegate Dominica Fernandez said the suspect is believed to have entered the shop, stolen a knife which he then used to assault the woman, whose identity hasn't been released.

Fernandez told journalists the attack appeared to be random and that the man was well known in the area. It took place shortly after 10 a.m. (0900 GMT, 5 a.m. EDT) in the southern town of Arona, about 10 miles (15 kilometers) north of the beach resort of Los Cristianos.

Regional newspaper La Opinion reported the suspect had received treatment at the psychiatric unit of a local hospital in February after being involved in previous violent incidents.

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Sylvia Hui in London contributed to this report.