Road rage killer Kenneth Noye is believed to be raking in thousands of pounds renting out the Spanish hideaway he lived in while on the run to unsuspecting British tourists.
The career criminal is using the six-bed villa, where he laid low after knifing to death Stephen Cameron on the M25, as an Airbnb holiday let.
Noye is thought to be using his son Brett to promote the property overlooking a magnificent golden sand beach near the small fishing town of Barbate, where he was arrested at a restaurant after an international manhunt lasting more than two years.
The 75-year-old, now back on the streets after serving 21 years in jail for Stephen’s 1996 murder, also has the house up for sale for £1.7million.
His son has told friends he wants to increase the asking price to around £2million after his family’s financial fortunes took a mysterious turn for the better.
It puts Noye in line to make an even bigger profit on the house he reportedly bought for around £200,000 cash from a German businessman in 1997 under the alias Michael Mayne, aka 'Micky The Builder'.
The villa, perched high on a hill overlooking beautiful Atlanterra beach close to the quiet village of Zahara de los Atunes, is showing up as unavailable in the peak season months of July and August when a two-week stay could cost upwards of £13,000.
A week-long stay for four adults and four children at the start of October, the first period available after the summer, comes in at £2,603 all-in with a long-stay discount and cleaning fee.
The detached home, described on Airbnb as a “private family villa with spectacular sea views” is marketed for up to 12 guests and boasts a large pool, six bedrooms and three bathrooms as well as parking space for six cars.
The online write-up for the property says: “Entire villa hosted by Brett” and adds: “Perfectly situated on the mountain side with amazing views to the Atlantic Straights and Morocco. The property is large with six well portioned bedrooms all with great views.”
The house is in the name of a Spanish company although its owner is English.
One well-placed source said: “Kenny Noye’s son Brett presents himself as the owner.
“However he tells those close to him his dad is the real owner but can’t appear to have any links to the house because of who he is.”
A lot of the 17 reviews from holidaymakers who have stayed there are positive, with one British tourist describing it as a “comfortable villa in an unbeatable location”.
But a French family, who rented the villa last year and would have been completely unaware they were criticising the former hideaway home of one of Britain’s most notorious gangsters, complained the pool was green when they arrived and so “dirty they couldn’t see the bottom”.
They went on to moan there was mold inside the villa, stains on the linen and a water leak in the kitchen and claimed the host showed “bad faith” when they raised the defects with him.
They added in a damning review after leaving early with a refund following discussions with Airbnb: “The host has to fix his house.
“Don’t count on him if you have a problem because he’s not there. In his listing the only thing true is the view his home offers.”
Brett, one of two sons Noye had with estranged wife Brenda Tremain, responded to another guest called Jose who complained things in the house were “old” by saying: “The house is old but you paid 35 euros per person per night which is the price of a hostel in a bad town.”
The villa looked empty last week, although the open entrance gate at the end of the driveway appeared to suggest it is currently being rented with locals revealing tenants usually leave it open when they are out because the gate motor is faulty.
The area, developed by German and Swiss entrepreneurs, was once a hideaway for fugitive Nazi war criminals according to local rumour.
One knowledgeable expat local said: “The house’s best asset is its view. Inside it’s a bit dated and needs some work done to it to bring it up to scratch.”
Most of the newer neighbours have no idea about Noye's violent past, which includes the fatal January 1985 stabbing of a police officer in the garden of his Kent home.
But one person who has a clear memory of the day his time on the run came to an end, after he sat down to feast on fish and white wine at famed eatery El Campero a 20-minute drive away, is Jesus Vargas.
The former waiter, now in charge of the restaurant, pointed out the table where Noye had just made himself comfortable with a younger lover when police nabbed him.
Recalling the events of his August 28 arrest from 25 years ago, Jesus said: “One of the men on top of him growled 'I’m a police officer, keep back’, as I approached thinking a fight had broken out.
“I only found out the following day when the press arrived that the man that told me he was a semi-retired builder who had made his money in construction in Tenerife was a fugitive killer.
“I was flabbergasted. I thought the worst he had got up to was cheating on his wife. He’d come here regularly with a younger woman you could tell he was dating yet a couple of times over the year or so I knew him he’d turn up with his family.
“He'd leave great tips and his favourite dish was an expensive cut of tuna which he’d wash down with white wine."
The arrest occurred a day after Stephen Cameron’s girlfriend Danielle Cable, 17 when she saw him being killed and still in witness protection, was taken to nearby Il Forno restaurant and identified him to police as part of an undercover operation following a tip he was hiding out in the area.
Marino Rambelli, the Italian owner of the popular eatery, said: “Memories fade after so many years and the police never identified themselves the day they came so there’s nothing I can tell you about that.
“But I remember Kenny Noye although he wouldn’t have told me that was his name then. He gave good tips and looked as if he wasn’t short of money.
“He was usually accompanied by a woman. He would come here often for pizza and always sat on the same table by the window.”
