Brit mum knifed to death in Spain ‘set up cameras & changed locks to keep out ex’ who told cops ‘I did something bad’

A FRIEND of a British mum allegedly stabbed to death in front of her kids has said she had fitted cameras and changed locks to try and keep her ex away.

Victoria Hart, 33, had a restraining order out against her ex partner after she tried to divorce him.

The mum-of-three was stabbed to death at her family home in Alhaurín el Grande, near Marbella, on Saturday.

Victoria’s estranged ex, Juan Antonio Rueda, 37, is accused of her murder.

According to local paper Malaga Hoy, the suspect handed himself in at nearby Alhaurín de la Torre Prison, allegedly telling staff: “Arrest me, I’ve done something very bad.”

A friend of the Brit hairdresser today revealed the steps Victoria had taken to try to keep herself and her children safe.

Hull-born expat Elaine Mawer, 69, said: “Victoria did everything in her power to do everything right with the authorities but the system let her down.

“She changed the locks, she got cameras fitted, you name it, she did everything she could.”

Elaine, a regular customer of Victoria, said that her friend’s ex was due to be electronically tagged by police to help enforce the restraining order.

And she claimed that a tag could have saved the mum-of-three’s life.

She said: “Her ex should have had a tag on ages ago and that could have saved her life.

“The police decided he should wear it because he was ignoring the court order.

“But his attitude was, ‘I’m going to do anything I like and no-one’s going to touch me’.”

Victoria’s eldest child – an 11-year-old boy – raised the alarm by pressing a panic button in the house. 

The youngster is also said to have phoned his grandmother after his mother was attacked. 

It is unclear whether Victoria’s twin daughters, aged seven, witnessed the horrors unfold.

Elaine blamed the breakdown of Victoria’s relationship with the suspect on his “narcissistic” personality and his alleged drug problem.

Tragically, she revealed that the last time she spoke to the murdered hairdresser, Victoria was waiting for an electronic tag to arrive for the suspect.

Elaine claimed: “The last time we spoke she said they were waiting on the tag which was coming from another part of Spain.

Obviously it didn’t and he was continuing to breach his restraining order and abuse it by getting too close to her.”

She said Victoria’s ex “never got over the fact she ended up staying in the house”.

The friend added: “I’d encouraged her to report him for breaching the order even though it was a very difficult situation for her because at the end of the day he was still a father to their three children.”

Elaine said her friend “worked very hard” on her business and raising her three children.

The expat said: “She was a good soul, a devoted mum and a devoted wife until her husband started doing the things he used to do to her, and then how can you carry on loving someone like that anymore?

Elaine added: “The system definitely let my friend down and it shouldn’t have come to this.”