A 30-year-old expat was dragged to his death as a gang of thieves tried to snatch his mobile phone.
Christian Pikulak was giving directions when one of the crooks grabbed his device and the driver slammed on the accelerator.
Moments later, the car smashed into a bin, flinging Christian to the ground in front of his horrified girlfriend.
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Covered in blood and unresponsive, he was rushed to a local hospital in Torrevieja, Spain.
He fought for his life for several days but tragically passed away.
His devastated partner, Vivienne Hoos, recalled: “My boyfriend Christian and I were on our way home after being at a bar.
“A large white car pulled up beside us. There were three or four young men inside, and they asked for directions to La Zenia.
“They said they had no internet and asked us to show them on our phone where they were going so they could take a picture.
“My boyfriend reached out his phone to show them the way – and that’s when they sped off, with his arm still stuck out of the car.
“They accelerated and drove straight into a large grey Spanish rubbish bin. It toppled over, and my boyfriend was thrown to the ground.
“The next thing I heard was a loud crash. When I ran after him, my boyfriend was lying lifeless on the road, his head covered in blood.
“I put his head in my lap. He was breathing strangely, his eyes open but unresponsive.
“I called an ambulance, screaming that he was going to die and that they had to hurry. There was blood everywhere, and I tried to stop it.
“A man on the street helped me talk to the ambulance because I was too shocked – I could only scream and cry.”
After a few hours in the Torrevieja hospital, Christian was transferred to another facility in Elche, where he remained in a coma, as reported by Need To Know.
“The force and speed had ruptured an artery in his neck,” Vivienne said.
The attack happened in the early hours of last Friday (3 Oct) morning.
By Monday (6 Oct), his brain had stopped functioning, and doctors made the heartbreaking decision to turn off his life support. His heart stopped beating 17 hours later.
“His mother and I were at his side the whole time. We talked to him, kissed him, and held his hand. I said goodbye to my love, my best friend, my everything.”
Christian, from Sweden, had been living in Spain for three years.
Vivienne described him as “a man full of life, dreams, and love for his family, friends, and work”.
The couple ran a restaurant, Smashed Burger, in Torrevieja, which she is now being forced to close.
Police are now working to locate the vehicle – last traced to Alicante through Christian’s stolen phone – and those responsible.
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