Two men shot dead by hooded gunman outside Irish bar on the Costa del Sol are ‘infamous Scottish gangsters’

Two ‘infamous Scottish gangsters’ were shot dead by a hooded gunman at an Irish bar on the Costa del Sol as locals and tourists watched on in horror.

They understood to have been gunned down near the entrance door to Monaghans Fuengirola, in Andalusia, by a masked armed assailant on Saturday evening.

He reportedly got out of a car that screeched to a halt outside the bar before fleeing in the same vehicle driven by an accomplice. 

Both men died at the scene and a third person was injured after being hit by the bullets, but their condition has not been disclosed.

Despite police sources initially describing the two men killed as Irish and saying one was 41, Spain’s National Police subsequently confirmed both were Scottish.

Earlier the government’s sub-delegate in Malaga Javier Salas also said they were both Scottish. He said the first victim was shot in the chest and the second in the chest and abdomen.

Regional newspaper Diario Sur reported the attack took place just after 23:00 when a car pulled up and a masked man opened fire. 

Spanish media reported that officers from the region’s specialist and violent crime unit are leading the investigation. 

The Foreign Office said it had not been approached for any consular assistance but that its staff stood ready to assist any British nationals if required.

Witnesses relived their horror today after being caught up in the shooting of the two Scots.  Spanish police have not released the names and are not expected to do so.

A local living near the scene told local paper Malaga Hoy this afternoon: ‘I thought they were going to me kill me too.

‘I thought I was hearing fireworks at first but then saw the noise was coming from someone firing a gun.’

A Chinese expat who owns a shop next to the bar told the paper: ‘It was about 11.30pm when I heard a noise coming from next door.

‘I looked out and saw a man pointing at something and shooting.’

Saying he saw other customers run for their lives as the attack occurred and a family walking by took refuge in his shop, he added: ‘I didn’t look at the gunman’s face or whether he left on a motorbike or in a car, I just remember I saw the weapon.

‘I was in shock, I didn’t how to react.’

Workers at a nearby beach bar and restaurant also told how how families with children took refuge inside after the shooting started.

One said: ‘I didn’t see anything because we focused on crouching down and staying safe, but it was a very frightening experience. 

‘Obviously all the customers we had left as soon as it was safe to do so.’

Monaghans is located on the seafront and is a popular bar with tourists and expats.

Monaghans is located on the seafront and is a popular bar with tourists and expats

The bar had been showing the UEFA Champions League final on the evening of the attack.

It comes after a ‘British’ man was killed in a Costa del Sol street shooting in April.

The murder happened around 8.15pm on April 21 in the popular British holiday resort of Calahonda between Marbella and Fuengirola.

Police were hunting the killer who was believed to have fled the crime scene in a getaway car later found torched nearby. 

The murder happened on a street called Don Jose de Orbaneja Street, where there is a well-known tennis and padel tennis club as well as a neighbouring holiday resort called Finca Naundrup.

The victim was already dead by the time police and paramedics reached the scene.

Locals told cops they had heard between eight and 10 shots being fired. The incident was described as a gunfight.

Police put the area on lockdown after the shooting.

A Cupra vehicle with foreign number plates was found burned out nearby shortly afterwards. Insiders said weapons had been found inside.