An international arrest warrant has been issued for a British man who was detained after allegedly striking down two vacationers in a terrifying ‘hit-and-run’ incident in Spain.
Jack Benjamin Hulme, 31, was charged with hitting two pedestrians in Magaluf, Majorca in the early hours of March 23, 2023, but was released on bail by a Spanish judge just 36 hours after being held in police custody.
But today it emerged he is now a wanted man after failing to respond to attempts to contact him by court officials.
The ongoing judicial case has been suspended until Hulme, who faces extradition following his eventual arrest, is located.
The British fugitive, reportedly under the influence of alcohol before hitting a 19-year-old British man and a 20-year-old Polish woman, is facing trial on five charges.
Three people standing next to the victims managed to run out of the way and reach safety as the car veered towards them.
It is understood that Hulme got into a row with another British man whose girlfriend had fallen out with his partner prior to the incident.
He left the confrontation scene in anger, then mounted the pavement in front of a fast-food outlet, injuring the two unsuspecting victims, who were merely ‘in the wrong place at the wrong time.’
Jack Benjamin Hulme, 31, is said to have mowed down two pedestrians on March 23, 2023
He had gotten into a row with another British man before leaving the scene and mounting a nearby pavement outside a nearby fast-food restaurant
Disturbing footage captures the Polish woman unconscious on her back with her shirt open after the vehicle fled. Miraculously, both victims survived without severe injuries.
Hulme was arrested at nearby Son Matias beach after a police manhunt.
During his initial court hearing, he claimed he hadn’t intended to run anyone over but was unable to see clearly because someone had earlier ‘sprayed him in the eyes’ with an aerosol.
A judge lost patience with the Brit, who had to register contact details with court officials as part of his bail conditions and agree to inform them of any change of address.
Eventually, he declared Hulme in contempt of court before issuing an international arrest warrant.
Hulmes was arrested on suspicion of attempted homicide after the incident, but was charged with lesser crimes which include two counts of wounding, reckless driving, and a drink-drive offence.
Public prosecutors are demanding a four-year prison sentence if he is found guilty at trial.
A spokesman for the Spanish police said: ‘A British man who was on holiday in Majorca has been arrested on suspicion of attempted homicide following an early-hours hit-and-run incident in Magaluf.’
A 19-year-old British man and a 20-year-old Polish woman were described as being ‘in the wrong place at the wrong time’. Miraculously, they both survived
Horrifying footage shows the Polish woman lying unconscious on her back with her shirt open
They added: ‘He was held at nearby Son Matias beach after a police search for him and his vehicle.
‘The incident was preceded by some sort of argument that is still under investigation.
‘One of the people hurt was a Polish woman and the other a British man. Both were also on holiday in the area.’
It follows a similar case where Brit Max Barnes, 25, was held on an international arrest warrant issued by a court in Palma after being bailed and going AWOL following a bottle attack on a Magaluf bouncer in July 2019.
Officials also issued the arrest order after he failed to respond to court communications.
The Briish man was handed an 18-month suspended prison sentence in June after being tracked down and admitting the unprovoked attack at The Plaza bar at the end of Magaluf’s bustling Punta Ballena strip as part of a plea bargain deal.
Barnes, who had already paid his victim nearly £35,000 in compensation, admitted his guilt in a trial where he spoke briefly via videoconference.
CCTV footage showed the Lithuanian bouncer reacting to the bottle attack in the packed nightspot by leaving Barnes on the ground with a flurry of punches before bringing his hand to his blood-covered face and neck.
The 34-year-old was left with a gash wound needing 20 stitches according to public prosecutors, although local reports subsequently put the number of stitches at 50.
