Far-Right Party Falsely Blames Moroccan for Spanish Church Murder

The population of Alcalá la Real is shocked by the death of Paco Zúñiga, the sacristan of the Santa María la Mayor church, who died on Friday after being stabbed several times by a homeless person who, according to initial reports, would be of Moroccan origin.

After the tragedy, the Vox party quickly incited Islamophobia on social media, claiming that the aggressor was a Muslim of Moroccan nationality. However, the alleged perpetrator is of Romanian origin. "Vox has greatly distorted the messages. At no time was it said, from official sources, that the aggressor was of Moroccan origin," Marino Aguilera, the mayor of Alcalá La Real, told the newspaper Voxpopuli.

The mayor clarified that the aggressor is a European citizen, a 33-year-old Romanian, "disturbed, deranged, in any case, who probably suffers from mental problems." He immigrated to Spain to work on the olive harvest, which is coming to an end. At the time of his arrest, "he was completely crazy, drunk and under the influence of drugs," the mayor added.

The victim’s family has already asked "that his memory not be used" for xenophobic or racist purposes. The Alcalá la Real municipal council, for its part, has called for calm. "Many people come from other countries and live here in cordiality. We are not willing for this fact to disrupt the coexistence of our inhabitants and generate a feeling of xenophobia or racism," said Marino Aguilera.

The municipal council observed a minute of silence on Saturday in memory of the victim, and decreed a day of national mourning and the flying of flags at half-mast.