A beauty model accused of shooting her British millionaire ex at his villa in the Costa del Sol will stand trial charged with his murder.
Mayka Kukucova, 25, was extradited from her home in Slovakia after she fled Spain following the death of jeweller Andrew Bush, 48 in April last year.
Allegedly the Bristol based business man was shot by Kukucova in his mansion when he turned up with his new girlfriend Maria Korotaeva. Kukucova claims she shot Mr Bush in self-defence during a struggle after he shot at her but missed.
Today the investigating judge decided she should be charged with murder. A date for the trial, which will take place at a court in Malaga in front of a jury, has yet to be set.
In a seven-page document, the prosecutor Jose Antonio Nieblas wrote:
The accused, moved by the unmistakable desire to end Andrew Bush’s life and at a certain point in a row they were having, made a sudden and unexpected use of the .38 special-model Amadeo Rossi revolver that she was carrying.
She shot Andrew Bush three times, the first shot hitting him in the arm and the other two in the head.
Andrew Bush had no chance to react or defend himself against the unexpected and unpredictable attack which caused his death.
If Kukucova is convicted she could face 20 years in jail. However private lawyers representing Mr Bush’s relatives including his daughter, Ellie, and sister Rachel, are conducting a parallel prosecution, and want Kukucova jailed for the maximum 25 years if she is found guilty of his murder and two years for breaking into his home.
They believe Kukucova should receive the higher sentence because she deliberately and inhumanely increased her alleged victim’s suffering.
Her defence lawyer will claim in court she has committed no crime and should be acquitted, insisting she acted out of self-defence.
Mr Bush began dating Kukucova in 2012 when she got a job at one of his Gold Trader shops in Bristol. However he ended their relationship around November 2013, reportedly because of her bizarre behaviour.
Mr Bush’s sister, Rachel, who also worked in his shops, said last year in an interview: “It got to the stage where Andy had to ask Mayka to find a new job because her anger became uncontrollable… She would come back in the shop and create big scenes, shouting in front of the staff.”
Kukucova told Slovakian police before her extradition to Spain that she travelled to her ex’s house near Marbella to collect her belongings after being ordered to move them out by Mr Bush. She denied breaking in – insisting she picked up the keys from an agreed hiding place and said she only stayed in the property while she waited for a friend to arrive from Slovakia.
More of a concept than a journalist, Tom Percival was forged in the bowels of Salford University from which he emerged grasping a Masters in journalism.
Since then his rise has been described by himself as ‘meteoric’ rising to the esteemed rank of Social Editor at UNILAD as well as working at the BBC, Manchester Evening News, and ITV.
He credits his success to three core techniques, name repetition, personality mirroring, and never breaking off a handshake.