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Spain mayor resigns for drink driving, attacking police
BARCELONA, April 22, 2020 (AFP) – A Spanish mayor resigned on Wednesday
just hours after being arrested for drink driving and attacking police who
stopped him, a court and local media reported.
Nearly six weeks into one of the most restrictive coronavirus lockdowns in
the world, Alex Pastor stepped down as Badalona mayor following reports he
was caught driving under the influence and bit an officer who tried to give
him a breathalyser test.
“Alex Pastor has resigned,” said a statement from the Badalona town hall,
a beachfront town just north of Barcelona that is home to 200,000 people.
He was arrested in Barcelona Tuesday night and later charged with “a road
safety violation and for attacking police”, a court statement said.
“He was arrested after showing symptoms of having drunk alcohol,” Catalan
regional interior minister Miquel Buch told local radio, without giving
further details.
Local press reports said Pastor physically lashed out at police, even
biting one of the officers.
Local councillor Ruben Guijarro later confirmed the details.
“Everything that has been published is true, we have confirmed it,” he
told reporters.
In a letter read out by a colleague at the press conference, Pastor said
holding down the role of mayor “affected my health and my emotional state and
caused me to do things that I regret”.
Since March 14, Spain’s population of nearly 47 million have been confined
to their homes in order to slow the spread of the outbreak, which has killed
more than 21,000 people.
People are only allowed out if they work in essential jobs, to buy food or
medicine, to briefly walk the dog or for a medical emergency.
Police have handed out hundreds of thousands of fines to those found to be
in breach.
BSS/AFP/MRU/1950hrs