THE mum of a man locked up for four-and-a-half months without charge simply couldn’t wait to cook her son his favourite meal – spaghetti bolognese, garlic bread and a cup of tea.

Kate Burgess, 56, spoke exclusively to the Echo from Spain, about how she was looking forward preparing for her son James Harris, 29, to leave jail.

James, of Pelham Road, Southend, and Kyle Thain, 24, of Sandringham Road, Southend, were both released from prison on Thursday.

They are accused of attempted murder and have been in a prison, near Alicante, since July 8. However, neither man has been formally charged with anything.

Mrs Burgess, who lives in Thundersley, said: “The lawyer phoned on Wednesday morning and said he was going into court for the bail hearing.

“He asked if I believed in God and when I asked why he said I should pray.

“When I got off the phone I lit a candle and said the Lord’s Prayer. When he called back and told me the news I just cried like a baby.

“I then spoke to James on the phone after he heard the news and he said he couldn’t wait to give me a cuddle. He said he wanted spaghetti bolognese, garlic bread and a proper cup of tea.”

Mrs Burgess, who has lived in her apartment in Cabo Roig, Alicante, since the lads were arrested, told of the struggle of finding the bail money.

She said: “I’ve taken out a £5,000 overdraft, but it had to be done.”

She explained how James and Kyle will have to report to a police station in Alicante three times a month as part of their bail conditions.

Meanwhile, James’s sister, Anna Harris, 26, of Crowstone Road, Westcliff, is flying out tomorrow – with a one-way ticket.

She said: “When mum called me and said she was praying, I did the same and prayed to my dad as he died last year.

“I asked him if he could pull something out of the bag and he did. Now it is like Christmas has come early. It’s not the end of the road yet, but at least they have their civil liberties back.”

James and Kyle are accused of stabbing two men in a bar near Alicante on July 4, close to where they were staying on a long weekend away.

Both were arrested as they went to board a plane home. However, the pair maintain they never even went to the bar and their families say there has been a terrible case of mistaken identity.