It all started last August 24th. The 82-year-old Portuguese businessman reached the real estate he put up for sale in Almancil (Portugal). When to show it to potential buyers. But a few menor they got into his car and beat him and threatened him with guns as well as binding.
So they traveled 1,200 kilometers in the victim’s car over the course of 20 hours, first through and then through various parts of Portugal. Spanish border to Collbató (Baix Llobregat). They left the businessman tied to a tree in a forest in this town.
A neighbor passing by on a nearby road located him and notified the Collbató Local Police, who activated the Medical Emergency System (SEM). The victim, who had many injuries, was treated at the outpatient clinic. While being detained, The kidnappers beat him and threatened to take his bank codes. and thus will be transferred to your accounts in France and Lithuania about 100,000 euros.
The suspects tried to defraud a larger amount but were unsuccessful and also stole the victim’s bank cards and passwords. Withdrawing money from ATMs and purchasing electronic devices in shops in central Barcelonawith. The businessman’s son reported him missing in Portugal, and cooperation began between the National Police and Europol, as well as the Mossos d’Esquadra and that country’s authorities.
Another kidnapping attempt
Following this complaint, a joint investigation was launched between the Mossos and the Police, with the participation of the Portuguese Judicial Police. Authorization allowed to identify and locate kidnap suspects residing in Spain. Last December, the day before the arrests, the suspects unexpectedly departed for Portugal and the agents they followed their footsteps.
So, with the help of the Portuguese police, they realized that his intention was to kidnap a businesswoman in Setúbal. Victim on the afternoon of December 11 In this town, he parked his car in front of his house and was approached without actually entering his house. with another car in which three people were traveling.
Two of them threatened him with a firearm and tried to force him into the backseat of his car, but the victim’s partner heard his warning screams and He left home to fight the kidnappers, who gave up on the kidnapping. Even though the businesswoman’s car was stolen.
to Torremolinos
Thanks to the geographical location of the vehicle, the kidnappers were located in Torremolinos. There, police arrested five people, including two in connection with the businessman’s first kidnapping. From the victims’ statements, investigators determined the following:While three people were involved in the kidnapping, the gang acted in an organized manner as the rest had the task of clearing the accounts. and store the money in a banking network.
Regarding the kidnapping of the businessman, Mossos identified the suspects in the municipalities of Alicante, Malaga and Murcia, as well as in other countries such as France and Portugal. For this reason, a joint research team was established within the framework of CITCO. identify group members to know their connections with other people. Europol investigated the bank transfers made by the persons under investigation to current accounts in France and Lithuania, and with the information it obtained, it was able to obtain the necessary evidence to arrest all the kidnappers.
9 people were arrested
Under the supervision of the Martorell Court of Inquiry and the First Instance 7 and the Sant Feliu Prosecutor’s Office, agents arrested 9 people. WITHIn addition to the five people from Torremolinos, 4 more people were arrested on 13 December in Alicante, Sucina (Murcia) and Málaga.. six suspects These concern the kidnapping of the businessman in Almancil and the attempted kidnapping of the businesswoman in Setúbal (Portugal).
Agents accuse them of kidnapping, violent robbery and membership in a criminal group. In the searches carried out in the houses of the suspects in Alicante, Murcia and Malaga, in which the Mossos of the Criminal Investigation Department participated together with the National Police, A real gun and two simulations, telephone devices, bank documents, zippers and clothing were allegedly found. those investigated were wearing it at the time of the abduction.
They also found a special printer that allowed them to create agendas with banking information and high-resolution documents containing fake data such as bank cards or driver’s licenses. The Portuguese Judicial Police has identified other suspects allegedly involved in this criminal network.
for a safe
Inspector Rafael Montes, head of the Mossos’ Southern Metropolitan Region Criminal Investigation Division, said the businessman untangled himself from the tree and walked confused through the woods until his neighbor found him. Agents also removed his bracelet from the tree to which it was tied.. His vehicle was found parked at Barcelona airport thanks to fingerprints and analysis. The identity of one of the suspects was revealed from security cameras.
The rest were followed because they paid with credit cards and bought electronic items such as mobile phones at various restaurants in central Barcelona on the same day they left the victim tied to a tree. Thus, the security cameras of the stores were examined and their identities were determined thanks to the images and fingerprints. Thanks to the cooperation of Europol and the French authorities.
The three perpetrators of the kidnappings were Brazilian citizens between the ages of 24 and 25. that they were “very violent”, According to Inspector Montes, they had the support of another group of gang members who were tasked with moving the money through various bank accounts to avoid the location of the money. For this reason, 52 of the first 3 transfers made from the businessman’s account were moved to his bank accountAccording to Montes, some were created shortly before the euphoria, meaning “planning.”
Inspector Juan Castillo, head of the National Police Alicante Provincial Judicial Police Brigade UDYCO, announced that the suspects could be identified due to one of the purchases they made in Barcelona andthat they bought a cell phone with a case, “showing that this was for him”. So they traced the number to Alicante, where three suspects in the first kidnapping were located. However, after 2 of them were arrested, the other was detained in temporary custody. He wanted to rob the employees and customers of a brothel in Alicante at gunpoint.
Batista Correia, chief investigator of Policia Juciciària da Diretoria do Sul (Faro), stated that the suspects followed the high-net-worth victims and planned the kidnapping in this way. Inspector Juan Castillo says the main suspects They had criminal records for minor crimes in France and that they were “too young” so they “could have continued acting” after the first kidnapping and second attempt. While the three suspects who carried out the kidnapping were held in temporary prison, the rest were released on charges by court decision.