A BRIT boxer has confessed to stabbing a Spanish teenager to death in a “road rage” murder trial in Spain.
Lewis Briggs, 24, is accused of slaying 19-year-old Ulrich Perez after he fatally stabbed him in the heart while he was allegedly high on cocaine in 2020.
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The alleged attack took place on a zebra crossing in Diana Park between the resorts of Marbella and Estepona as the teenager returned home from a nearby supermarket.
He is alleged to have attacked his victim after being told he was driving too fast in his UK-plated white Mercedes.
The Brit boxer was extradited to Spain from the UK to face justice after being held on the outskirts of Leeds in West Yorkshire in December 2020 following a five-week manhunt.
The self-confessed killer, facing more than 23 years in prison if convicted of his crimes, claimed he was under the influence of alcohol and drugs after an all-night party before allegedly killing the teen boy.
The court documents read: “After a struggle with the victim, with the intention of ending his life, we allege the accused kicked him in the chest and stabbed him in the chest before fleeing.
“As a result of the brutal aggression the victim died from an injury caused by a single stab wound to the chest which penetrated his heart and caused massive external haemorrhaging according to the autopsy.”
Briggs answered “Yes” both times while being cross-examined by the public prosecutor when he asked if he stabbed the teen boy.
He added: “I remember kicking him and him getting hold of my leg and then the collar of my top and trying to pull me to the ground.
That’s when I punched him a couple of times and suddenly saw the blood. I was carrying a knife in my hand which was small and had a button on it to open it but didn’t mean to use it or do him any serious harm.
“I only grabbed it because when he ran behind my car I could see in the rear-view mirror he had his hand in his pocket and I didn’t know why. Everything happened so fast. I wasn’t thinking properly.”
Taking the stand today in a Spanish court, Briggs told his victim’s family: “I want to say sorry. It was never my intention to kill anyone. It was an accident.”
The victim’s mum Tatiana Perez told the court today: “My son left our home because I sent him to buy some washing up powder we needed.
“I’d grounded him a few days earlier because he’d lost his ID and given the Covid restrictions still in place I didn’t think it was a good thing to have happened.
“A neighbour told me something had happened to Ulrich and because I knew he was a bit clumsy I thought at first he’d fallen on the stairs and broken a bone.
“When I reached the street it was full of police and I saw someone over him trying to revive him.”
Briggs is also accused of stealing the number plates of a nearby Audi S8 hours after the killing and attaching them to his hired car to try and hide his tracks.
However, the trained boxer has denied the allegations, blaming it on his died who died while he was on remand in a Spanish prison.
He also claimed his late father had arranged for the return of the hired Merc to the UK and helped him flee Spain by finding a friend to drive him to Portugal where he bought a plane ticket to England.
Briggs was extradited from the UK to Spain in January 2021.
A Spanish police spokesman said at the time: “British police have handed over the suspected killer of a Spanish man who was arrested on December 22 last year.
“Police investigations determined that the victim was about to cross a zebra crossing when he was almost run over by a vehicle whose driver had to brake sharply.
“The driver initially left the scene but returned moments after and got out of his car and stabbed the pedestrian in the heart without warning, ending his life virtually instantly before speeding off.
“Nothing could be done to save the victim’s life and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
“Investigators had identified a suspect and discovered he had allegedly managed to flee Spain for England.”
Briggs was a trained boxer who often practised at the MGM gym that welcomed stars like Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
Prosecutors have alleged that a well-built Briggs used his knowledge to launch a surprise attack on his “tall but skinny ten-stone victim”.
They are now demanding a prison sentence totalling 16 years – 14 for the fatal knife attack which they admit was the result of an “intention to end Ulrich’s life.”
Briggs’ defence Ana Maria Hidalgo Perez told the court today she felt a prison sentence of just three years and eight months was the right punishment for an incident she accused Ulrich of provoking and ended in an act of stupidity by her “imbecile” client.
Ulrich’s furious dad said on the steps of the court: “I don’t believe a word of what my son’s killer says. His apology means nothing.
“He speaks perfect Spanish because he’s lived in Spain since he was a child. He’s putting on an English accent and pretending he speaks Spanish worse than he does.
“He can try to call this dress this up however he wants but I’m confident it will be proven this was a cold-blooded murder.
“The fact he’s willing to blame his dead dad, his own flesh and blood, for trying to help him abscond when he’s not here to defend himself in court shows you just what type of man he is.”
The ongoing trial is due to finish next week.