London-based mother died alongside her husband in Spain holiday hot tub tragedy

A married couple found dead in a jacuzzi at a Spanish holiday villa may have become trapped underwater, investigators believe.

Thomasina Tobin, 51, and her husband, Patrick, 48, were found by their teenage children after lying undiscovered for more than 12 hours in the outdoor hot tub at the villa in Cullera, Spain.

Spanish police believe Mr Tobin may have become trapped underwater by the jacuzzi’s powerful suction system before his wife died while trying to save him.

Preliminary inquiries suggest their deaths were “brought on by acute stress following physical exhaustion and the desperation of the moment”, according to Valencia newspaper Las Provincias.

The Tobins, who lived in London, died on Tuesday during a two-week holiday in the luxury Cap Blanc area near Valencia.

The couple’s deaths were initially investigated by homicide detectives, after scratches and marks were found on both of their bodies, but foul play was quickly ruled out.

Police are now looking into the possibility that the couple died in a freak accident.

A third examination of the jacuzzi is taking place alongside an industrial expert.

According to La Provincias, the expert, who joined police at the request of a judge, analysed the power of the suction fittings in the hot tub.

Detectives are investigating whether the tub's hydro-massage system could have triggered a strong suction effect that trapped the couple in the water, Las Provincias said.

"According to the first investigations, the excessive suction force would have imprisoned the couple inside the bathtub, which triggered a situation of extreme anguish and desperate physical effort to free themselves from the hydraulic grip,” the newspaper reads.

"The autopsy findings almost definitively reinforce the theory of accidental entrapment.

"Preliminary analyses indicate that the victims suffered cardiac arrest brought on by acute stress following physical exhaustion and the desperation of the moment."

Another possible theory is that one victim suffered a cardiac arrest due to electrocution from a suspected fault in the tub and that the other died trying to save them.

Mrs Tobin, who was originally from Castleblayney in Ireland, had lived in London for around 20 years. Mr Tobin was from New Zealand.