Two teens charged with murder of Yorkshire businessman on holiday isle

Company director Peter Cockshutt, 71, was stabbed twice in the chest and once in the leg, the Tenerife Civil Guard said.

His body was found after what may have been a bungled robbery.

A 16-year-old and a 14-year-old, both of South American origin, were charged with murder and robbery and are expected to appear in court later this week or next week.

The windows had been forced in the villa in Costa del Silencio where Mr Cockshutt's body was found and everything inside was in disarray, a Civil Guard spokeswoman said.

A post-mortem examination was carried out on Monday evening but the results have not yet been made public, she said.

Mr Cockshutt and his wife Patricia are believed to have shared their time between the Tenerife property and their main home in Yorkshire – a large converted hall in the village of Brandesburton, near Driffield.

Mrs Cockshutt is reported to have returned to the UK from Tenerife last Friday. Her husband was thought to be alone in the villa when the attack took place.

Mr Cockshutt is thought to have been semi-retired but remained the sole director of an import firm called Eco Aqua Solutions he set up in Spain last May.

Originally from the Manchester area, he lived with his wife in Cherry Burton, near Beverley, before moving to a substantial detached property in Fitling, East Yorkshire, about seven years ago.

The couple moved to Brandesburton last year and are thought to have bought the villa in Tenerife as a second home in 2006.

The property is in the Tamaide development on Tenerife's southern tip, just a few miles along the coast from the large resort of Playa de las Americas, where thousands of Britons will be heading during next week's half-term break. It was one of the first areas of the Spanish island to be specifically developed for tourism.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said yesterday: "We can confirm the death of a British national in Tenerife, Spain, on February 8 2010.

"Consular staff are contacting the next of kin and will offer consular assistance.

"Local police are investigating."