Tourists and Thieves: Came from Bilbao during the December Holiday to Burgle Homes in Alicante

A criminal organisation specialising in home burglaries took advantage of the influx of thousands of tourists arriving in Alicante during holiday weekends to commit their crimes and return home with the loot. This modus operandi did not elude the National Police, who managed to locate and arrest one of the alleged members of this illicit association, solving burglaries in several apartments in Alicante and Dénia.

The detainee lived in the heart of Bilbao's old town, where he was arrested, and his alleged accomplices are being sought. The burglaries, up to nine, occurred during the Constitution Day holiday. The gang used locksmith tools to open the doors of homes without leaving signs of forced entry, entering the apartments as if they had the owner's keys. Very professional.

Initially, there was no violence in their illegal activities. They knew the homes they targeted were empty, so once inside, they leisurely stole jewellery and money. They had no problem taking the safes from the homes to open them later at their convenience. Once their 'vacation' was over, they returned to their place of residence in Bilbao.

This movement did not mislead the investigators. As a result of the surveillance carried out and the study of the evidence, they were able to determine their identities and the location of at least one group member in a well-known street in the old quarter of the Basque capital.

With the evidence provided by the officers, the Alicante investigating court, in collaboration with those in Bilbao, was able to search the Bilbao residence and arrest one of the suspects.

During the search carried out with the support of members of the Special Operations Group (GOES) based in Bilbao, as planned, a 33-year-old man was arrested. He had numerous prior convictions for property crimes and robberies with intimidation, but no trace of items from the committed burglaries was found inside.

Therefore, the officers continue their investigations to find the rest of the individuals linked to the organisation and the whereabouts of the stolen items. The investigation remains open, and the arrest of the remaining individuals involved in the incidents is not ruled out.

Once the proceedings with the detainee were completed, he was released on provisional liberty with precautionary measures.