Mark Lewis has been left in charge of the town hall in San Fulgencio after the mayor, deputy mayor and four senior councillors were arrested

A British expatriate who speaks only a smattering of Spanish has become the "accidental mayor" of a town on Spains Costa Blanca after a wave of corruption arrests. Mark Lewis, 58, has been left in charge of the town hall in San Fulgencio after the mayor, deputy mayor and four senior councillors were all taken into police custody following allegations of real estate corruption. Mr Lewis, who lives in Spain with his wife and daughter, was given the title by default on Wednesday on the grounds that he is one of only two councillors from the ruling coalition not to be arrested.
"Mr Lewis has taken charge of the council on the grounds that he is the fourth deputy mayor. Everyone above him in the pecking order has been arrested," the source added. "Everything is in a state of chaos since these arrests and we are left with someone who speaks only a few words of Spanish," said a source at the town hall.
Mr Lewis refused to comment on his new position except to say: "It's only temporary I hope. I'm sure this will all be sorted out very quickly and everything will return to normal." The town hall was thrown into disarray when deputy mayor Manuel Barrera Garcia, 61, was detained by the National Police on October 20 after a video showed him allegedly accepting a 5000 Euro bribe from a property developer. Socialist mayor Trinidad Martinez, and councillors Juan Antonio Gamuz, Juan Antonio Gonzalez Palenca, Mariano Marti and Fina Reme were arrested on Wednesday lunchtime as the corruption probe widened. Police raided the town hall and seized documents, in a move that mirrors the investigation into the Marbella scandal of March 2006 when the entire planning committee were arrested.
Mr Barrera was allegedly caught on camera saying: "It's better if you give me big bills, they take up less space". He denies any wrongdoing and claims he was set up by political rivals. "I am completely innocent. The video was manipulated to make it look like I accepted a bribe," he said after being released on bail.
The Spanish government have vowed to clamp down on corruption by town officials and rid the nation of its reputation for underhand dealings.