The security forces monitor the average case of parental abduction, a crime for which 434 police reports were filed in 2021. These cases involved complaints about the disappearance of a minor. According to interior ministry statistics cited by Europa Press, 283 cases were registered from January to August 2022, 14 of them occurring abroad.
Official statistics did not distinguish whether the complaint came from the father or the mother and were questioned after the interior ministry stopped including this data in annual reports. The National Center for Missing Persons (CNDES) was referenced in discussions about the data.
In this context, opposition parties criticized what they viewed as favorable treatment of the executive. Juana Rivas and Maria Sevilla, two mothers who reported their children’s abduction, were convicted and later pardoned.
Catalonia leads the figures
According to information from the Criminality Statistics System, the State Security Forces and Bodies, and regional and local police, Catalonia reports the most cases so far in 2022, with 53 incidents, compared with 74 cases for the entire 2021 year.
Andalusia has recorded 44 cases to date this year, and the Community of Madrid 40, though both communities reported 67 cases in the 2021 twelve-month period. The Valencian Community added 46 parental abductions in 2021, the Balearic Islands 32, the Canary Islands 25, Galicia 19, and the Basque Country 18. Outside Spain, authorities were aware of 26 complaints.
Statistics cover cases known to police forces, framed in Article 225 of the Criminal Code, which punishes parents who abduct a child without a valid reason. The penalty ranges from two to four years of prison and includes disqualification from exercising parental authority for four to ten years.
Abduction is defined as the removal of a minor from their habitual residence without the consent of the parent with whom they normally live, or without the consent of the person or institution that has custody, or any similar violation of an established duty by court or administrative decision.
Baby kidnapping in Zaragoza
Parental abductions often trigger public concern because of the involvement of a minor. A notable incident occurred at the Piedra Monastery in Zaragoza on October 13 when Civil Guard authorities resolved the abduction of a 13-month-old infant within hours after a separation reached a recent crisis point. The child’s mother was approached in the monastery parking lot during a tense confrontation that left a person injured. An urgent complaint led to the father’s arrest in Parla, along with his paternal grandparents and a friend who allegedly offered to help hide the child. The first two were placed in preventive detention.
Within 24 hours, the Zaragoza Command chief resolved the case and delivered the baby to the mother. The commander stated that a major fear was the possibility that those responsible for abducting a minor could flee the country. The article 225 penalties of the Criminal Code apply, and if the child is taken outside Spain or if return conditions are sought, harsher penalties can be imposed, including up to four years in prison for aggravated abduction.
Recent actions show that authorities continue to pursue related offenses. In Bilbao, Ertzaintza arrested a woman accused of stealing a newborn under the guise of a nurse, though this case did not appear in the same category of parental abduction statistics. Article 225 of the Criminal Code provides a remedy when the offender informs the other parent or a legal dependent of the location of the child within 24 hours, paired with a genuine commitment to prompt return. If a restitution occurs within 15 days, penalties can include six months to two years in prison, and relatives up to the second degree may also face consequences in connection with the incident.