A British citizen has been arrested in Ibiza for their alleged part in a criminal group from the UK that took a stolen vehicle to the popular island destination and used it to commit further thefts from homes and businesses.
Spanish police said the theft of a van from an industrial estate on the island, July 14, led them to investigate a group of Brits staying in Sant Antoni de Portmany who had travelled to Ibiza with the apparent intent to commit crime.
The Balearic island has seen a spate of burglaries and violent robberies in recent weeks, which Guardia Civil officers have linked to the group.
A breakthrough in their investigation came on August 9, when local cops found an SUV-style car with fake British number plates that had been used in the thefts. The vehicle had been set alight and abandoned, in a clear attempt to destroy the evidence.
This vehicle was caught on CCTV speeding away from a luxury goods store in Marina Botafoch with €100,000 worth of products, smashing through a road barrier during its escape.
This car had actually been stolen in the UK before being used for crime in Ibiza, according to the Majorca Daily Bulletin.
The van, which had been stolen on the island, was then used to transport the £86,000 of luxury goods stolen in the town, which is a 20-minute drive from Sant Antoni.
Images from inside the store show a hooded and masked individual rifling through a back stockroom, loaded up with boxes that they then pass to another person.
However, the criminal gang did not get to keep their pilfered goods for long as, thanks to the work of local police officers who spotted the stolen van and intervened, these goods were recovered.
Spain’s Guardia Civil has announced one arrest in the wake of their operation, named ‘Lezo Ball’, and stated that they have dismantled a criminal organisation bent on committing vehicle theft and burglary in Ibiza.
They have not named the detained individual, but have clarified that they are a British citizen.
An investigation is ongoing to determine if the alleged British criminal group are behind further crimes on the island.