A british ‘paedophile’ has been arrested after allegedly trying to snatch a two-year-old child in a Barcelona park. The 35-year-old was held after the youngster’s ballsy 12-year-old brother reportedly stopped him from taking the toddler by trying to punch him and forcing him to flee. Police in the Catalan capital are said to have discovered the suspect had previous convictions in the UK for child sex offences after taking him into custody.

They tracked him down after rushing to the scene and getting a description from witnesses. The incident happened on Sunday evening (21 December) in an unidentified park in the Barcelona neighbourhood of Sant Andreu in the north of the city. 

Local reports say the alleged offender is currently living in Barcelona although he originally comes from Manchester.

He was released on bail pending an ongoing investigation after appearing before an investigating magistrate in a closed court hearing. He has been banned from going within 50 metres of the park where the alleged attempted abduction took place as part of his bail conditions.

A spokesman for the regional Mossos d’Esquadra police force said: “I can confirm an arrest took place following reports a man tried to snatch a child in a park in the Sant Andreu area of Barcelona.”

He declined to comment on reports the suspect was already known to police in the UK because of “sexual misconduct” with children and possessing a weapon in a school.

It was not immediately clear if he had simply been arrested over those offences or was already convicted and on a sex offenders register.

He is understood to currently live in Barcelona’s Zona Franca area, a large industrial and logistics area in the city’s Sants-Monjuic district between the Port of Barcelona and El Prat airport.