German man given life sentence for murdering his wife and son in Tenerife

Members of the Spain's Civil Guard lead the suspect away after his arrest in April 2019.
Members of the Spain's Civil Guard lead the suspect away after his arrest in April 2019. Copyright AP Photo
Copyright AP Photo
By AFP
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The bodies of a German woman and child had been found "stoned to death" in a cave on the Spanish island in 2019.

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A German man has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering his wife and son on the Spanish island of Tenerife.

Thomas Handrick was found guilty of killing his victims with a rock and was given the maximum penalty.

The Court of Santa Cruz de Tenerife sentenced him to "permanent and revisable imprisonment" on Thursday.

The bodies of a 39-year-old German woman and her 10-year-old son were found dead in a cave near Adeje on the Spanish Canary Island in April 2019.

Authorities were alerted when another of the couple's children - a seven-year-old boy - fled the mountainous area and raised the alarm.

Handrick was also convicted of trying to kill his other son, who had survived after "walking for a long time in a remote and uninhabited area".

The killings sent shockwaves across Spain and were condemned by prime minister Pedro Sanchez.

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