A BRITISH teenager was shot dead as he struggled with two gunmen during a botched robbery in a luxury villa in Barbados.

Daniel May, 19, from Hornchurch, Essex, was shot twice in the back on Wednesday night while helping his father to confront one of the assailants.

The teenager fell to the ground as his father, Lindsay, tried to fend off one of the robbers by stabbing him several times in the neck with a broken bottle. Daniel was taken to hospital but pronounced dead on arrival.

One of the gunmen escaped with an undisclosed amount of money. Last night police were guarding a suspect with a stab wound at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital as they searched the island for the second man.

The Mays, a family of seven, arrived in Barbados two weeks ago and were spending their holiday at Prospect, St James, on the wealthy west coast of the island.

The family had returned from a restaurant just after 10pm when they were attacked in an upstairs bedroom. The assailants are alleged to have demanded money while holding the Britons at gunpoint. A struggle ensued.

The suspect under arrest is understood to have been struck with a fire extinguisher. He is reported to have told hospital staff that he had been robbed and injured by a group of men.

Hospital sources said that he was in a serious but not critical condition. The teenager’s father had minor cuts.

John White, the British High Commissioner, described the incident as unfortunate but said that it would not affect any advice to British visitors.

“This is a peaceful and very welcoming island for British and other countries’ tourists and I hope it very much remains that way,” Mr White said.

“The best advertisement for Barbados would be if the police force were able to capture the people who are responsible for this incident and for them to be dealt with swiftly under the law.”

Hudson Husbands, chairman of the Barbados Tourism Authority, said that his organisation had moved the victim’s family to a different location and was paying their bills.

“We are monitoring their wishes . . . so that we can actually provide for those details,” he said.

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