Benidorm woman faces trial after allegedly cutting worker’s safety rope, leaving him hanging from 13th floor

A woman is facing trial in Alicante after allegedly cutting a safety rope supporting a construction worker who was carrying out renovation work on a Benidorm high-rise.

The incident happened more than five years ago, on January 20, 2021, but the case is now being heard by the Provincial Court of Alicante on Monday September 28.

The prosecution is seeking six years in prison for the accused, who is charged with attempted homicide over the alleged incident.

Worker was suspended between floors

According to the prosecution’s account, the worker was carrying out rehabilitation work on the façade of a building in Benidorm where the accused lived.

He was suspended outside the building at a height between the 12th and 13th floors while using a rope-based safety system.

The prosecution alleges that the woman went out onto the gallery of her home carrying a sharp object and cut one of the ropes holding the worker.

The worker was then left relying on the remaining part of his safety system.

The situation became even more dangerous when, according to the prosecution, the woman allegedly moved towards the second rope.

The worker’s colleagues reportedly saw what was happening and shouted at her.

The prosecution says the woman then stopped, while the worker managed to grab hold of a cornice on the building to prevent himself from falling.

Six-year prison sentence requested

The Fiscalía is accusing the woman of homicide in the attempted stage and is requesting a six-year prison sentence.

That is a prosecution request rather than a sentence imposed by the court. The allegations will be examined during the trial, and the accused remains presumed innocent unless a court ultimately establishes her guilt.

The case is being heard by Section 10 of the Provincial Court of Alicante, with the trial scheduled for Monday, September 28. The court will consider the evidence presented by the prosecution and the defence before reaching a decision.

Incident happened in 2021

At the time, police arrested two people in connection with the alleged incident. First reports said workers had noticed that one of the two ropes supporting the worker had been cut, leaving him attached only to the main rope.

The latest court proceedings concern the woman who is accused of cutting the safety rope.

The prosecution’s case is that her actions were deliberate and created a serious risk to the worker’s life.

According to the latest reports, the worker avoided falling from the high-rise after managing to hold onto part of the building while colleagues intervened.

What happens next

The trial will now examine the circumstances surrounding the incident, including the prosecution’s allegations about what happened on the building’s façade and the evidence supporting the attempted homicide charge.

The defence will have the opportunity to challenge the prosecution’s account and present its own evidence during the proceedings.

If convicted, the woman could receive a prison sentence, although the six years requested by the Fiscalía is not automatically the sentence the court will impose.

For now, the case remains before the Provincial Court of Alicante, more than five years after the dramatic incident in which a worker was allegedly left fighting to avoid a fall from a Benidorm high-rise.