Recent reports describe a disturbing wave of violence linked to a criminal organization with members of Algerian origin. This group engages in drug trafficking, kidnapping, extortion, and aggressive assaults using firearms, machetes, and axes. The violence has intensified since July, with clashes aimed at consolidating control in a portion of Alicante, particularly in the northern district.
National Police authorities gathered information from victims and witnesses. After seven suspects were arrested, six remain incarcerated, and investigations continue to identify roughly a dozen additional individuals connected to the escalating violence among criminal factions. As reported in the press yesterday, the criminal activities extend beyond drug trafficking and kidnapping to include violent robberies, forced occupation of homes, and irregular migration-related offenses.
Investigators from the Alicante Provincial Judicial Police Brigade for Violent Crime and Organized Crime have confirmed the involvement of about a dozen more people beyond those already detained. New arrests are possible in the coming days. Police also suspect that some individuals involved in machete and gun fights may have fled to France.
In fact, some suspects who could not be captured during the operation’s initial phase have roots in France. One individual is already held in a French prison on charges related to mugging and victim intimidation, according to the Alicante National Police investigation into the brawls and abductions.
Aggression recorded in France
Investigators obtained a video from France showing several people present, where a restrained man is beaten and a knife is used in an assault. Police confirm that one of the identified suspects was the victim of one of Alicante’s seven violent incidents within a three-month period. This Algerian man sustained injuries during clashes where an attacker used an axe.
The same individual was reportedly frightened while driving from Alicante to Torrevieja a few days later, with gunfire directed at vehicles. He faces warrants related to involvement in other attacks, including an assault on a man whose face was slashed from the ear to the neck.
Authorities accuse him of targeting a residence, where a group of Algerian citizens disguised as police officers entered, demanded money, and beat and restrained the occupants. The victims sustained various injuries, while mobile phones and jewelry were stolen. The assailants also threatened severing an attacker’s genitals with pruning shears.
The organization had a clear structure and division of labor aimed at controlling crime. While some members carried out violent acts, others occupied residential properties to recruit irregular migrants into the group. Another role involved managing narcotics, with participants engaged in both the handling of illegal substances and street-level distribution and sales.