A Bulgarian young man, accused of beheading a British grandmother in a shop in Tenerife, has been described as a little crazy, but not a bad guy by his flat mate in Edinburgh.

Deyan Deyanov, 28, allegedly killed 60-year-old Jennifer Mills-Westley in a shop in the popular resort of Los Cristianos. He stabbed her 14 times before decapitating her.

The man who lived with him in Edinburgh told Scottish broadcaster STV News on Tuesday that his ex-flatmate was "a little crazy".

The 36-year-old, who asked not to be named, lived with Deyanov for 18 months in Leith as he worked on building sites around the city.

He told STV News that his flatmate worked hard during the week but on the weekends took a lot of drugs which would make him "crazy".

He said: "He worked five days a week and was off on the weekend. Saturday and Sunday were crazy days because he was drinking and smoking. I had trouble with him because he smoked marijuana.

"He started dancing on the bed because he had too much to smoke and drink. Sometimes Scottish women would visit him here for sex. He had lots of energy.

"He lost his job but he wasn't lazy he looked for a job, he tried to find another job."

His former flatmate added that he came home one night to find Deyanov sitting crying.

He said: "I said to him 'why are you crying?' He said because nobody cares about me, nobody cares what happens to me, I'm alone.

"One day he cried, the next day he jumped on my bed, he was crazy. One day sad, one day happy."

Two years ago Deyanov left Edinburgh, telling his flatmate he was moving back to Bulgaria. But that was not the last he heard from him.

Four months ago, Deyanov returned to the flat on Halmyre Street but his former flatmate did not let him in.

He said: "Four months ago he was here but I didn't open the door because I didn't want trouble. I live an easy quite life and I don't need trouble. I heard his voice behind the door. He was there for about half an hour saying 'please open the door'.

"He was a little crazy but he wasn't a really bad guy. It was a big surprise for me what has happened. It's a terrible situation."

Spanish authorities said on Monday that an arrest warrant had been issued for Deyanov's arrest in Tenerife three days before the attack. A magistrate had ordered that he be detained for psychiatric tests after a previous incident.

Officers did not bring in the homeless man, who was well-known in the area. The mayor of the region said Deyanov should have been detained earlier.

Jose Albert Gonzalez Reveron said: "This person was well-known to police and had been involved in very many altercations.

"Everyone would like him to have been detained earlier. He should have been in a psychiatric hospital."

Deyanov has been charged with murder and is being held in the psychiatric unit of Tenerife II prison.