Driver mounts pavement and crashes into several people sitting at a terrace bar in Marbella

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This is the astonishing moment police cart away the driver who mowed down and injured 10 people as they enjoyed the Costa del Sol sunshine on Monday.  

Officers were filmed sprinting towards a waiting patrol car and carrying the barefooted Spaniard blamed for the incident face-down with his hands and legs immobilised.  

One of the four policemen could be heard shouting ‘Clear the way’ as he tried to ensure they got the 30-year-old to a police station in the resort of Marbella in the aftermath of the drama as soon as possible.

The extraordinary detention occurred after the unnamed driver, who was at the wheel of a white car thought to be a white Suzuki SX4, was overpowered and cuffed shortly after the 3.15 p.m. drama. 

A police spokeswoman said officers arrested the car’s driver and are investigating the incident, which saw the car mount the pavement and run people down.

Police and paramedics rushed to the premises, which is in an area of the centre of town near the beachfront which is full of cafes and eateries and is hugely popular with tourists.

Online videos from the scene of the crash, one of the main thoroughfares in the coastal resort city, showed ambulances and police officers while waiters cleaned up or assisted people on the ground.

The incident took place in the mid-afternoon as the area was brimming with customers having lunch, said Raul Morote, whose family owns several restaurants on the popular avenue.

‘The car was zigzagging and sweeping away everything,’ Morote told AP. He added he could see about a dozen people being assisted on the spot by emergency crews, many of them with blood covering their legs.

El Espanol newspaper reported the driver was a young local man who was in the car with his parents and police were not treating the accident as terrorism-related. 

Some reports suggested the unnamed 30-year-old Spanish man was suffering from mental health issues.

While most of the injured were seen at a local hospital, two people had to be taken to a bigger facility in Malaga, the provincial capital, including a woman with serious injuries, the National Police said in a statement.   

A video appeared to show the driver sitting dazed in the car as it was surrounded by witnesses to the crash, as people around ran to try and help the injured or contact the emergency services.

Another video showed the trail of destruction left by the car, with chairs smashed and scatters and people – some covered in blood – seen sitting on the floor. 

The bar is in a street called Avenida Miguel Cano, near the spot where holidaymakers start tours of the Marbella in horse-drawn carriages.  

A spokesman for Spain’s National Police said this afternoon: ‘We can confirm the arrest of the driver of the vehicle. 

‘He is a Spaniard aged 30. A terrorist motive has been ruled out as the cause of the incident. Investigations are ongoing to clarify fully the cause.  

‘Two of the casualties have been taken to another hospital in Malaga. One has considerable injuries.’ 

Several ambulances and at least one fire engine was shown in pictures from the scene, where the car had appeared to crash into a shop front. 

Fully-vaccinated British holidaymakers are now spared quarantine when they return to the UK from Spain.

The new rule came into effect on Monday. 

A chef at a snack food bar who witnessed the horror incident said: ‘He careered into people sat on several tables on the pavement. Four Arab women who were on holiday in Marbella were among the injured.’ 

Jorge Martin, manager at the Casa Blanca bar where most of the casualties were enjoying terrace drinks and food, said: ‘I helped some of the injured. 

‘I would say anything between six and 10 people were hurt. I couldn’t really tell you where they came from. We’re talking cuts, broken bones and probably head injuries. 

‘It was a very distressing situation. I know someone has been arrested but I’m not in a position at this stage to say what exactly happened and whether the driver meant to mow down people or it was an accident.’

Another worker at a cafe-bar opposite, who declined to give her name, added: ‘The police and ambulance were at the scene very quickly. 

‘The first emergency vehicle was arriving as I put down the phone after dialling 999.

‘People were screaming and shouting and there was a lot of bystanders running in every direction because at first no-one really knew what was going on and whether it was a terrorist attack. 

‘Others jumped on the driver before the police got to him and held him while back-up arrived. ‘I saw an older man and woman get out of the car he was in. 

‘It happened around 3.15pm. The vehicle involved was a white Suzuki, I think it was a Suzuki SX4.’ 

The man at the wheel of the car is believed to have tested negative in drink and drugs tests after he was removed from the scene. 

Well-placed sources said they were investigating whether he was suffering psychiatric problems. 

A spokesman for Spain’s National Police confirmed: ‘Officers are investigating at the scene together with town hall-employed local officers to try to clarify the causes. ‘Several people have been injured in the incident.’

In 2017, an extremist Islamist cell killed 16 people and injured 140 others in two consecutive attacks by driving vehicles into groups of bystanders in Barcelona and the nearby coastal town of Cambrils.