At least five people are thought to have been injured after a gunman reportedly opened fire at a Marbella beach club.
The incident took place early this morning, Monday 18 July, at the Opium nightclub in Costa del Sol.
The most seriously injured of the revellers was an Irish man, who 'suffered a gunshot wound to the chest', according to police sources.
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The gunman is said to have now been detained, after the incident reportedly started in the VIP area.
One British expat who was among the crowd said: "There was an initial problem in the VIP area which the bouncers sorted and led to one person being taken away.
"The shooting occurred during a second incident about ten minutes later.
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"The talk is that there was a fight between rich Russians and Arabs after the guy who had been taken away came back in but no-one’s confirmed it yet.
"They were swinging around those massive bottles of Belvedere Vodka and the bouncers charged back to try to sort it out and that’s when the shooting started.
"I was with my husband and he just flung himself on top of me because at one point the gunman seemed to be shooting out into the crowd.
"There was a real mad panic and everyone just rang for the exits. It was all very confusing."
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The incident is still being actively investigated, but one person living near the club added: "I couldn't sleep because of the noise of the music and suddenly I heard four shots."
"I looked over my balcony because I knew straight away it wasn't the sound of fireworks like other nights.
'That's when I saw a lot of people running out of the venue.
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'Police and ambulances began arriving very quickly. I counted 18 police vehicles and at least three ambulances but I think one had already left with the most seriously injured casualty," they told El Confidential.
Speaking of the incident, a spokesperson for Spain's National Police said: "With regards to the shooting incident at Opium in Marbella we can confirm that five people were injured.
“Four have suffered gunshot wounds, one of whom is in a serious condition. A person who is the suspected gunman has suffered stab wounds to the chest and head.
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“He has been arrested and is under police custody. The police investigation is ongoing."
One source suggested: "Police are working on the theory the gunman reacted by getting out the weapon he was carrying and trying to shoot him after being stabbed, but he missed his target and instead shot four other people."
Shola Lee