Police in T-Shirt and caps walking down the Avd Med |
About a dozen off duty National Police officers from Benidorm, who had volunteered their day off, handed out leaflets to anyone passing by and explained what the scam entailed - it was surprising how many were unaware of this activity! They donned special t-shirts and caps of the National Police to identify themselves to the public. Unfortunately non of the gangs happen to be around - most unusual on a Wednesday, which is market day and so as always, was positively heaving with people.
Talking to Manuel Soler |
Until the law is changed there is very little that the police can do - however, the Town Hall could have passed a local by-law quite easily effectively outlawing this type of criminal activity by all accounts! It is a mystery to the National Police why it hasn´t happened and that they are having to wait for a change in the national law before they have any real powers to deal with this ongoing problem.
The first draft has already been passed without any opposition in the Senate and has now been passed to Congress. The final stage is passing it through the "Boletin Oficial del Estado" (Official Bulletin of the Government) - which Manuel is confidant will happen soon. All laws and regulations of the country are written into this "official gazette" which is published every day - except Sunday and upheld by the courts.
Canal 9 film crew reporting for the Spanish news |
Leaflet handed out |
Jose Maria Benito, Police Inspector and the official spokesperson for the SUP arrived from Madrid to show his support for the campaign saying that it was an important issue for the town as tourism is a major source of income and so imperative to make it a safe environment for visitors.
Once passed in law penalties will be harsh as it will be classified as "organised crime" - fines of up to 3000 euros and prison sentences of between one and six years will be the norm... hopefully that will eradicate one major scourge of the resort! It was reassuring to witness that the National Police are taking the issue so seriously.
A final word of warning - DO NOT stop to watch if you see these gangs, just carry on walking and ignore them... they are pro´s and you will NEVER win against them!
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