Two in court over island deaths

Brian and Tina Johnson moved to the Canaries from Swansea

Two men have been remanded in custody over the deaths of an expatriate Welsh couple on the Canary Islands.

The bodies of Brian Johnson, 59, and his wife Tina, 57, were found partially buried on Sunday on Fuerteventura.

One of the men is believed to be a tenant who had rented a property from the couple. A third person, understood to be the tenant's son, is thought to have been released by police.

Mr and Mrs Johnson ran the Park Inn in Mumbles, Swansea, in the 1980s.

They moved from Wales nine years ago.

A third person, understood to be the tenant's son, who was arrested in connection with the deaths is thought to have been released by police.

Mr and Mrs Johnson were reported missing by their son, Sam, who also lives on the island.

He has told police that his parents had left home on Tuesday to collect rent from a tenant to whom they let property nearby. They never returned.

The man on the left is believed to be the Johnsons' tenant

There are reports that the man believed to be a tenant turned himself in to police some days after the killings.

The hearing in Fuerteventura was in a closed court, and no details of the charges were released but it is understood the tenant is accused of beating the couple to death.

Police had said they were continuing to search for a fourth person but, according to reports, have since focused their investigation on the two men still in custody.

Karl McLaughlin, a journalist based on the islands, said the third person who has since been released was a friend of the tenant's son. None have been named, but are all local.

Unlocked car

The Johnsons' bodies were discovered early on Sunday in the north of the island by a huntsman with a dog.

Their unlocked car was found in the nearby town of Correlajo with their passports inside. The couple's dog was believed to have been found in their garden.

The couple's bodies were found buried under stones after a search

The case has attracted a great deal of publicity locally and nationally in Spain.

The murders come two months after two men were jailed for murdering another couple from Wales who were killed when they were hunting for a retirement home in Spain.

Anthony and Linda O'Malley, from Llangollen, died in September 2002 after being abducted when they went to see a villa on the Costa Blanca.

However, the cases are quite different. The Johnsons had lived on the island for nine years and were well-known in their community.

Local people said they did not expect this sort of thing to happen on a holiday island like Fuerteventura.

The small expatriate community has expressed shock at the deaths.

Mr Johnson did some gardening work while Mrs Johnson worked some of the time as a cleaner.