Authorities from the Calp Civil Guard ROCA Team detained a couple, aged 28 and 27, residents of Riba-roja de Túria, on charges tied to stealing more than 62,000 meters of electrical cables used for public lighting from multiple municipalities in the Marina Alta and Camp de Túria zones in Valencia. A scrapyard worker in Valencia has also been questioned for helping to move the copper stolen by the pair.
The Civil Guard accuses them of 19 counts of theft and robbery, four crimes of extortion connected to their personal circumstances, and one offense related to road safety. A Security Court ordered the arrest of the woman and issued four search warrants along with imprisonment. The investigation began in October 2021 after complaints from several towns and reports of robberies in Xàbia, Teulada-Moraira, Dénia, Benissa, and Casinos in Valencia. The pattern of incidents suggested a coordinated operation by the same group, with detectives tracing a method that revealed the criminals’ approach and possible identities.
Investigators observed a consistent scheme across incidents. Thieves used a crowbar or similar tool to pry open access points of lighting vaults, then detached the underground power cables that ran between utility poles in the next segment. This method, repeated across locations, helped authorities understand how the crimes were executed and provided clues about who might be behind them.
Law enforcement also noted timing and location patterns that allowed them to identify the vehicles connected to the operations. On several occasions, a vehicle owned by one of the suspects appeared at the scenes. Depending on the amount and size of the material to be stolen, the group sometimes employed multiple large-capacity pickup trucks rented specifically for the job. Those details pointed to careful planning and the allocation of resources to sustain the thefts over time.
The couple under investigation carried a lengthy criminal history, and investigators discovered that the woman had even impersonated another person to obstruct ongoing inquiries and avoid possible arrest in related cases. This behavior drew heightened scrutiny and contributed to the breadth of charges faced by the pair, painting a picture of calculated deception alongside the thefts.
During the probe, a third individual emerged, a 42-year-old man of Ukrainian nationality who worked at a junkyard in Valencia. His role was to facilitate the sale of stolen copper, aiming to minimize suspicion and ensure the material moved smoothly to buyers. An inspection of this man’s business led to the recovery of about 200 kilograms of copper cable that had been stolen from a residential development in Casinos, Valencia, underscoring the broader network involved in moving the stolen property.
On June 9, the two thieves were arrested on a street in Riba-roja de Túria. An investigator testified that the man operating at the junkyard had received the stolen goods, confirming the network’s operational links. In addition to the copper recovered at the junkyard, authorities retrieved more than 3,000 meters of electrical cable and over 1,500 kilograms of copper related to electrical work stolen from a residential development in Xàbia and the Les Rotes de Dénia promenade, as well as material stolen from a construction site along a road leading to Benissa. These recoveries highlighted the scale of the thefts and their ongoing impact on public utilities and local infrastructure, prompting continued vigilance against similar crimes across the region.