British father-of-three who killed man, 66, he mistakenly thought was a sex pest escapes a prison term in Spain after agreeing to pay £167,000 'blood money' to his victim's family

A British father-of-three who killed a 66-year-old man he thought was a sex pest has escaped a prison term in Spain after agreeing to pay £167,000 in 'blood money,' to his victim's family. 

Mark Turner, 47, punched Mario Sauco once outside a bar after he was wrongly told Mr Sauco had pestered his daughter. 

The punch floored the Mr Sauco, causing him to hit his head against the pavement and fracture his skull outside the Churchill Bar in Fuengirola.

He died ten days later.

Mark Turner punched Mario Sauco to the floor outside Churchills bar in Fuengirola. Mr Sauco, 66, fractured his skull on the pavement and died in hospital 10 days later

Turner, from Dagenham, East London, fled the country in August 2018, but returned to Spain after a picture was released by police.

A court in Malaga convicted him of manslaughter, The Sun reports.

But he avoided prison, instead receiving a suspended jail term, by agreeing to pay compensation in a plea deal with Mr Sauco's family.

The father-of-three has been ordered to make 60 monthly payments of £725, then a £120,000-plus lump sum.

If he fails to pay, or reoffends, he will serve two years in prison.

According to The Sun, Judge Carlos Peinado Dominguez released a statement yesterday saying Mr Sauco has been a 'bit of a pain,' with one of Turner's daughter, but there was no evidence he insinuated anything sexual.  

The report read that Turner followed Mr Sauco out of the bar and hit him, before he could explain what happened.

Paying tribute, Mr Sauco's family said: 'Our only comfort is knowing that you're in a better place.'