Armed police storm Marbella beach club and order people out of the pool

Footage shows the moment heavily armed police officers storm a beach club in Spain as surprised holidaymakers watch on.

The dramatic incident happened in a famous Costa del Sol beach club in the middle of a pool party.

British tourists watched on speechless as almost 20 armed officers wearing body armour raided the Ocean Club in the Marbella resort of Puerto Banus.

Holidaymakers wearing bikinis and swim shorts were enjoying a sunny day at the ‘beautiful venue,’ which hosted one of its two annual champagne parties popular with bank holiday visitors from the UK.

Shocked revelers watched on as heavily armed officers crashed the party (Picture: Solarpix)

The boozy party came to a sudden halt when the police urged the revellers to keep calm.

Officers said in Spanish and English over the loudspeaker: ‘This is just a routine check. The minute we finish you can continue enjoying your afternoon.

‘Don’t worry, there’s nothing serious going on.’

But the operation lasted nearly two hours, with a police helicopter hovering overhead.

Footage shows some revelers appearing uneasy as their holiday was interrupted by the dramatic raid.

One clubber is believed to have been arrested, although police have not yet confirmed the reason for the alleged detention.

The armed officers looked out of place among the tourists (Picture: Solarpix)

The spectacular club raid follows a string of shootings in the area, sparking the launch of the so-called Marbella Plan last month to keep British and Irish tourists safe.

Police warned locals and visitors at the time they could expect to see more random stops and police checkpoints in and around the tourist hotspot.

While the force said nothing about surprise raids on busy tourist-popular venues, heavily-armed officers crashed a gym at a sports club earlier this month in the residential area of Nueva Andalucia near Puerto Banus, making three arrests.

Gym-users were asked for their ID before being allowed to continue with their routines.

It is thought one clubber was arrested during the raid that lasted for hours (Picture: Solarpix)

Violence in Marbella

The series of shootings so far this year in the Marbella area have included a March 11 attack on British-run eatery La Sala near Puerto Banus that led to the arrests in April of a British man and Irish national described by police as having links to organised crime.

Kerry Katona claimed recently she had U-turned on a decision to move to the famous Costa del Sol resort with her family including fiancé Ryan Mahoney because she no longer feels safe about the prospect following the violent incidents there.

Fernando Bentabol, the prosecutor in charge of combatting drug crime in the province of Malaga which Marbella is part of, shone the spotlight on its dark underbelly in a recent newspaper interview by likening it to Medellin.

Asked by a local Spanish journalist if the Costa del Sol was turning into Colombia’s second-largest city, the most violent in the world in the 1990s before a clean-up and the former home of notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar he said: ‘Yes and no.

‘It can’t be compared to Medellin because countries such as Colombia are the ones that produce drugs, and most of the actions there are related to plantations, as happens in Morocco for example with cannabis.

‘We are in the area where the drugs are introduced and distributed to Europe.

‘But in terms of the level of the organisations involved and their economic capacity, yes it can of course be compared.’

However, some locals have branded parts of Marbella like Puerto Banus the ‘Wild West.’

One even suggested tourists should start thinking about putting on a bulletproof vest with their swim shorts and sandals.

Another wrote on social media, expressing her fears an innocent person could be killed: ‘A stray bullet could end up entering a house.’

In the early hours of Saturday morning, a 33-year-old man was shot on a residential estate a short drive from Puerto Banus, just across the Marbella municipal border with neighbouring Estepona.

No arrests have yet been made. Around ten shell casings thought to have been fired from an AK-47 were reportedly found scattered on the ground at the scene.

In May 2017, British man Marcus Stewart mowed down several pedestrians after speeding away from the Ocean Club in an Audi following a fight between two groups of men from the UK.

He was arrested by an armed cop on the beach after a police chase following a head-on crash on Marbella’s famous Golden Mile with a car carrying an 18-day-old baby.

Stewart was later jailed for more than five years.

The Ocean Club website describes its daytime vibe as ‘easygoing, with a quality restaurant, while our themed parties are famous for being as glamorous as they are exciting and lively.

‘Live music, dancers, entertainers and beautiful people make it an experience to remember,’ it says.

The club held its opening party this year on May 3 and its second champagne party on Sunday, a day after the weekend police raid.

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