This article references rape and sexual assault.
Netflix's latest docuseries, The Predator of Seville, may just be one of its most chilling true crime offerings yet. The series explores the case of Manuel Blanco Vela, a Spanish tour guide who lured young women through his business before sexually assaulting them.
For years, Blanco Vela evaded justice; however, eventually, dozens of women connected online and, spearheaded by survivor Gabrielle Vega, began making public accusations.
Blanco Vela eventually found himself in Spain's National Court facing allegations of assault. But where is the so-called “Seville predator” now?
The Lady tells the fictionalised true story of Jane Andrews and Sarah Ferguson.
Who is Manuel Blanco Vela?
Manuel Blanco Vela founded Discover Excursions, a travel company aimed at international students offering guided tours across Spain, Portugal and Morocco. He had a reputation for being friendly and trustworthy, and many students believed his company was officially affiliated with their universities.
What happened with the Predator of Seville case?
The Predator of Seville explores several of Blanco Vela's alleged assaults in detail, with survivors coming forward to recall their experiences. Gabrielle Vega, an American student, was 19 when she came to Spain to study abroad in 2013. In the documentary, she details how Blanco Vela organised a trip to Morocco for her and a small group of other students.
According to Vega, Blanco Vela encouraged the group to stay in the hotel, claiming it was unsafe outside at night. During the evening, Vega believes she was drugged. After having a beer and two glasses of champagne, she later told Today, she remembers that she "wasn’t even coherent.” She added, “I couldn’t stand up.”
She alleges that Blanco Vela then followed her into the bathroom. “He immediately put himself in my mouth and knocked me over,” Vega said.
A friend later told her that she had been in the bathroom with Blanco Vela for around 30 minutes.
Vega didn't complete her studies and was left traumatised by the incident, eventually developing PTSD.
After Vega came forward about her experience with Blanco Vela, students Hayley McAleese and Carly Van Ostenbridge also shared their stories on Facebook. The pair had been studying abroad in 2017 when they took a guided trip to Lagos, Portugal, with Blanco Vela. They claimed that he had lured them into a hotel room and asked them to do a “sexy dance”. When they tried to leave, he allegedly tried to stop them.
They managed to get out of the hotel and sought help from male friends, who confronted Blanco Vela. "We started asking him questions like, ‘did you make any advances on the girls’, and rather than just flat out answering 'no,' at first he was like, 'I would never do that, I need to protect my reputation, I can't do stuff like that,'" one of the witnesses told The Tab in 2018. Blanco Vela reportedly admitted “stuff happened” but denied assault.
The women later reported the incident to local authorities, but were told that proceeding with any case would likely be too complicated, given that the incident took place in Portugal and Blanco Vela was Spanish.
Following Vega's interview on Today and McAlesse and Van Ostenbridge's statement, more than 30 women reportedly came forward with similar stories.
Where is Manuel Blanco Vela now?
Vega and her fellow survivors spent years trying to spread the word about Blanco Vela. In 2025, he was finally found guilty of assaulting Vega, McAleese and Van Ostenbridge in Spain's National Court. He was sentenced to a total of 8.5 years in prison.
Per RTVE, the court also banned Blanco Vela from working as a tour guide for seven and a half years. He was also sentenced to 7.5 years of post-prison supervised release. He was ordered to pay €40,000 in compensation Vega and €1,500 to each of the other two victims.
As of February 2025, Blanco Vela is on provisional release pending the finalisation of his sentencing, per El Pais.
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