A RETIRED businessman shot by armed raiders in his luxury Spanish villa today said he said he fears he will never recover fully from his injuries.Brian Cowan has returned to his Suffolk home after being released from Ipswich Hospital last week.

A RETIRED businessman shot by armed raiders in his luxury Spanish villa today said he said he fears he will never recover fully from his injuries.

Brian Cowan has returned to his Suffolk home after being released from Ipswich Hospital last week.

The 61-year-old now faces a long spell of rehabilitation and the prospect of two more operations on his stomach.

Mr Cowan was shot three times in a botched robbery of his Alhaurin el Grande home, in the Costa del Sol, in July.

He was left in a critical condition following the incident, with wounds to his left arm, stomach and one of his kidneys, which later had to be removed.

After initially being treated in a hospital in Malaga, Mr Cowan was flown back to England and transferred to Basildon Hospital, before being moved again to Ipswich Hospital.

He is now on the road to recovery, despite losing four-and-a-half stone in weight since the attack.

Speaking from his home, in Middleton, Mr Cowan said: "I feel I'm lucky to be alive. It's daunting to think what could've happened.

"I'm doing fairly well, although I've only got one kidney left and I've still got a couple of operations to have to fix my bowels.

"I don't think I'll ever be right. It is worrying."

The ex-haulage boss, who is able to walk with the aid of walking stick, still has a bullet lodged next to his spine, which will eventually have to be removed.

He has been receiving physiotherapy for his injuries and is set to make regular visits to hospital as doctors keep a close check on his condition.

Mr Cowan wished to thank everyone who had supported him through his ordeal, including his wife, Linda, 56, and other family and friends.

He said: "The wife travelled in every day to Basildon to see me. I had several people from Ipswich and Felixstowe come too, which was nice."

Mr Cowan has no plans to return to his villa in Spain and intends to spend the rest of his retirement in Suffolk.

"That's me and Spain finished," he said. "I may go back for a holiday but it would probably be in a different part of the country.

"The only reason I'd go back would be to see some friends."

Mrs Cowan said she is delighted at the progress her husband has made.

She said: "It's a relief to have him home, it's just a case of having time to recover now.

"He's just resting really, although he has little walks. We go out for a ride every now and again."

Spanish police have arrested four men and one woman, of Kosovan Albanian orgin, in connection with a spate of crimes in the Costa del Sol. Inquiries are continuing to see if there is a link with the robbery of Mr and Mrs Cowan's home.