A 17-year-old girl is in critical condition after being set on fire in an occupied building in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria early Wednesday morning. The alleged attacker, a 20-year-old Moroccan national named Abarrafia, had arrived in Spain by boat in June and was subject to an expulsion order. He had escaped from an immigration centre and was living in the squat with the victim.
The girl, who had run away from a youth care facility, suffered burns to 95% of her body. Before losing consciousness, she told witnesses: “It was him.” She will be transferred to a specialist burns unit in Seville.
Police arrested the suspect shortly after the incident. He remains hospitalised for smoke inhalation. Authorities are investigating the circumstances of the attack, which occurred during a dispute around 4 a.m. The Canary Islands’ child protection agency confirmed the victim had recently been reported missing. Investigators are also considering the involvement of a second person.
