Brits in Benidorm targeted by Iranian crime gang who ‘impersonate cops to rob tourists outside hotels’
Crooks plague British holiday spots across Costa Del Sol
POLICE in Spain have arrested an immigrant gang who posed as cops to target foreign tourists including Brits outside their hotels.
The villains used fake police ID and dark cars with tinted windows and blue lights to fool their victims into believing they were real officers.
Pound sterling notes were among the valuables seized from the Benidorm-based gang - nine Iranian relatives who included four women.
Detectives say that although they were based in the famous Costa Blanca resort, they operated all over Spain including the Costa del Sol.
They are suspected of being behind at least 15 hold-ups and three attempted thefts.
Police say their favourite patches were tourist areas including zones around hotels and their preferred targets were tourists who were unfamiliar with the way Spanish police operate and could be more easily tricked into thinking they were real officers.
The operation that led to the gang arrests was dubbed Operation Renacidos-Venus II.
A spokesman for the Civil Guard in Alicante, which carried out the detentions in conjunction with the National Police, confirmed: “The Civil Guard and National Police have arrested nine members of an Iranian family clan in Benidorm - four women and five men - who belonged to a criminal organisation.
“Four of them were illegal immigrants.
“The gang operated throughout Spain as fake police officers.
“They were based in Benidorm but committed their crimes in different regions.
"They posed as officers by showing their victims, principally tourists who were unfamiliar with the modus operandi and ID documents of the Spanish police, falsified police badges.
“They worked in pairs, travelling long distances in their fake patrol cars which were dark-coloured vehicles with tinted windows and blue LED lights, and targeted their victims on industrial estates and tourists areas including the areas around hotels.
“Once they identified potential victims, they would frisk them and take money and jewels from them.
“They were constantly changing vehicles and worked for a maximum of a week in each zone to lower the risk of detection.
“During the operation two properties in Benidorm have been searched and a number of fake police badges seized along with stolen property including jewellery, watches and computer material as well as blue LED lights similar to the ones used on police patrol cars.
“Pound sterling currency was among the money that was confiscated.”
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