THE FAMILY OF a man from Northern Ireland say they’re looking for answers, following his death hours after arriving in Ibiza for a holiday with friends.
21-year-old Alan Drennan from Co Antrim was part of a group of 12 who travelled to the island on Saturday.
He was found dead in his hotel room the following day.
His friends have raised claims that he was assaulted by Spanish police in the hours before his death, and said that he had injuries to his head and upper body after being detained by officers at the airport.
The Drennan family have released a statement through their solicitors, Madden & Finucane, saying that at the moment they have “more questions than answers”.
The firm is in ”protracted discussions with Spanish, British and Irish authorities and consular officials to ensure that the precise circumstances of Alan’s untimely death are clearly established,” Michael Madden said in the statement.
Post-mortem
It was initially reported that the death appeared to be as a result of natural causes. However, a full post-mortem report has not yet been completed.
According to Madden, “the exact cause of death is unlikely to be established for a number of months due to the timescale for the availability of the toxicology report”.
“Alan’s friends have raised a serious allegation that he was assaulted by Spanish police officers prior to his death causing injuries to his head and upper body which were clearly visible to his friends upon his release from police detention at the airport.
We are assisting the family in trying to establish the truth of all possible contributory factors which led to Alan’s death.
“We are in contact with Spanish and British authorities including the British Consulate in Ibiza and the PSNI who are assisting the family. We are also in close contact with the Irish State Pathologist.”
Alan’s father, Alan Drennan Senior, said what had happened was “every parent’s worst nightmare”.
He said the family want to find answers “not just for us but for everyone else’s child who goes abroad on holiday and particularly to Ibiza”.
In a statement earlier, the PSNI said the force was not carrying out its own investigation, but was assisting Spanish authorities.
“We are gathering any relevant information and speaking to any potential witnesses to assist in the investigation being carried out by Spanish police,” Superintendent Kevin Geddes said.
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