Holidaymakers in the Canary Islands are being warned to look out for pickpockets which are “rife” in the Spanish archipelago.
It comes as dozens of people have been “complaining and warning about their presence” in holiday resorts across the islands, Canarian Weekly reports. Incidents have been spotted in Playa de Las Americas, Los Cristianos, and Callao Salvaje in Tenerife, Playa Del Ingles in Gran Canaria, and Puerto del Carmen in Lanzarote.
Pickpockets frequently descend upon the islands during the winter months, when the islands experience more visitors compared to mainland Spain and other resorts across Europe.
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The thieves also target rental cars, particularly those left in isolated areas at tourist hotspots, taking high-value items left inside.
Last week two off-duty officers detained two men, who allegedly stole a wallet containing €300 from a couple of tourists in Playa de Las Americas, in the south of Tenerife.
According to Canarian Weekly, the police warn people to be careful by not carrying a lot of money on them, not having PIN numbers and cards in wallets, not leaving valuables in cars and not being attentive to strangers approaching them for any reason.
In 2022 a new law was passed that gave them more power to charge them, as the ‘value amount of possession’ was lowered to make it easier for them to be arrested, charged or imprisoned.
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A reform of the Penal Code now includes prison sentences of up to 18 months for petty theft for re-offenders. It was introduced following demands by the tourism sector which is impacted significantly by the crime.
Previously criminals aware of loopholes in the law and found to have stolen less than €400 could “get away with it” and essentially not punished for the crime.
But now changes to the Penal Code mean that in cases of theft of less than €400, repeat offences will be looked at for the combined amount they have stolen rather than the individual amount each time, giving police “more incentive to arrest them and the courts more power to charge them accordingly.”
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