A CRAZED knifeman suspected of randomly attacking a man at a popular Spanish airport is believed to be homeless and live in the terminals.
The 45-year-old Salvadoran was remanded in custody over the horror attack amid a worrying rough sleeping epidemic plaguing much of Spain.
Police were urgently called to Majorca’s Palma Airport on Tuesday morning after reports of a man being stabbed in the neck in the arrivals area.
Detectives said the victim was a young Argentinian who suffered a wound a few centimetres from the artery which required several stitches.
They added: “The individual was walking back to the parking lot with a companion after visiting a family member in the arrivals area when they were approached by an unfamiliar person.
“The suspect asked them about his mobile and then pounced on his victim brandishing a knife which he used to stab him in the neck.”
It has now emerged that the suspect is a homeless man thought to sleep at the popular holiday airport.
Police said he had no fixed home after his arrest.
And well-placed sources revealed today that they believe the attacker is one of the rough sleepers at Palma Airport.
The homeless situation across Spain has drastically worsened in recent months with officials now taking note of the issue.
Reports even claim more than 400 rough sleepers have taken over Madrid’s Barajas Airport.
The attacker was heroically stopped by security guards who saved the young man’s life, police said.
Ivan Garcia Lopez, a lawyer from Majorca representing the individual in question, stated that his client is currently under investigation for potential charges of attempted murder.
He added: “I am working on trying to secure his release on bail.”
As a well-placed source told The Sun: “The man arrested said he doesn’t remember anything.
“He is alleged to have gone beserk after his own phone was stolen as he was going through his bag at the airport after getting off a bus.
“And then going up to the first person he saw to ask him about his mobile wrongly thinking presumably that it might be his.”
The assault follows another knifeman who tried to rob a taxi and attacked a police officer at Gran Canaria Airport.
It is understood that the man made numerous physical attempts to stab police with a “20cm” blade before he was shot dead by cops.
Inside crime riddled homeless camps at Spainish airports
Over the past few months, a number of Spanish airports have been struggling with issues such as homeless encampments, increased criminal activity, and unsanitary insect infestations, leading to advisories for travelers and public concerns.
Some rough sleepers have slept in the terminals for up to seven years, and have seen brazen violence and drug use under the roofs.
Brits have been warned about dirty and in some cases dangerous conditions after Madrid airport had to be fumigated for bed bugs last week.
The capital’s airport – full name Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas – is the country’s busiest and is where a “hidden city” has been allowed to balloon over the past decade.
Urine puddles and crack pipes little the floor, and nomads “off their faces” roam the corridors.
The suspect asked them about his mobile and then pounced on his victim brandishing a knife which he used to stab him in the neck
Well placed source
Some lay mattresses and cardboard onto the hard floor, while others simply curl up next to the walls surrounded by their belongings.
Many of the rough sleepers can also be seen sprawled across the chairs in the waiting areas of the terminal.
Homelessness is just one of the problems affecting the airports.
Madrid-Barajas had to be fumigated last week after passengers and staff reported being covered in bedbug bites.
Footage posted to social media also showed various bugs – including cockroaches, ticks and fleas – crawling around the airport, and workers posted evidence of the bites.
Airport staff down in Malaga have also reported noticing the itchy red bumps – though officials deny there is a problem.
Workers in the southern airport claim to have seen the insects “climbing up the walls” near the departure gates, and report using insect repellent before work.
