A criminal organisation reportedly involved in the trafficking of women for the purpose of sexual exploitation in strip clubs in the province of Alicante has been dismantled by the National Police. 48 women have been released and 48 people have been arrested as a result of the operation (two in Murcia and 46 in Alicante, six of whom have been placed in provisional detention).

Over 1,000 women are thought to have been exploited by the network in the past 12 months. False job offers deceived the victims, who were primarily from South America, into travelling to Spain.

Three strip clubs have been shut down by the National Police after conducting eight house searches in Alicante. They have also blocked 938,000 euros in bank accounts, immobilised 17 properties valued at 1,313,087 euros, confiscated eight forbidden weapons, and confiscated over 150,000 euros in cash, among other items.

A complaint on the National Police’s phone line 900 105 090, which, together with the email Trata@policia.es, encourages citizen cooperation and the private and anonymous reporting of human trafficking-related crimes, sparked the inquiry.

The victims were tricked by phoney work offers in Spain’s cleaning and beauty services industries in their home countries, primarily Colombia and Venezuela. The victims were brought to the clubs to be sexually exploited, but the offer did not materialise when they arrived.

Investigators were able to verify the existence of this transnational criminal organisation in Spain, which was situated in the province of Alicante and was operated by two Colombian women and a Spanish national, thanks to the many investigations that were started at that time. The latter spent his weekends with his family in the Murcia region and his weekdays managing his business in Alicante.

The organization’s structure included two tiers in addition to the three leaders: the taxi drivers who were responsible for driving the women on their outings to give home services and the people in charge of the strip clubs.

Clubs in Orihuela, Elche, and Alicante

The criminal group operated three strip clubs in Alicante, Elche, and Orihuela, which they attempted to pass off as hostels or guest residences in order to conceal their operations. Through the sexual exploitation of numerous foreign women in precarious situations, the network had established a commercial structure intended to benefit itself.

The victims, who were residents of the strip clubs themselves, were compelled to work around the clock, were constantly watched by members of the criminal organisation using sophisticated image and sound video surveillance systems, and had limited freedom of movement because they were only allowed to leave the house for two hours at a time.

They received no respite at all during the first week of labour, and starting in the second week, they were only allowed to have one day off under the supervision of the defunct organisation. According to investigations, the network took at least 40% of each service that the women provided; these funds were then handed directly to the organization’s leaders.

In order to draw in more customers, keep from getting arrested, and mimic a legitimate hospitality company operation, the victims were transferred between the several clubs. The sale of drugs to customers in the various strip clubs might also be detected.

It’s one of those races when it’s crucial to conserve energy in order to share an experience. Numerous runners were finishing their final stretches at the entrance to Elche City Hall just before eight in the morning. In addition to being wet, what was about to happen was one of those unusual events that people remember.

Yesterday, almost 1,400 athletes competed in the first Ultrahélike, a 100-kilometer race organised by the Local Police, starting at the Plaça de Baix. Sénen Ródenas, the local police superintendent and organiser, emphasised that the Police Headquarters’ goal was to encourage athletics while showcasing the Elche landscapes, including the hydraulic heritage that runs along the route and has been carefully restored by the Acequia Mayor del Pantano.

The intriguing thing about this race, which differs from the well-known Transilicitana, is that individuals who are new to ultra-distance running and lack the courage to embark on such a challenging course that may take them about twenty-four hours have been given the opportunity to compete. Thus, the shortened 50-kilometer course, which must be finished in 12 hours, began at 10 am with roughly 600 runners and walkers. Mari Navarrete was one of them; she had never raced more than 30 km, so she viewed this marathon as a formidable challenge. “My spouse participates in the 100-kilometer race, and he occasionally takes me to different locations along the course. Because there are more climbs and more people congregate there, I find this area of the swamp to be the most challenging.

“The accumulation of fatigue is important”

The most stressful part, according to friends Eva López and Carmen Mendiola, is passing the Charly grill next to the ravine “because there are many loose stones and the accumulation of tiredness is important, you have to pace yourself a lot and keep your head organised, and there are those who run at night, that’s complicated.” “We usually go out every weekend, it’s a way to spend Saturday, we have a very large group to prepare and there are those who are more into walking and those who dedicate more time to killing time,” said the friends.

Rankings

The first runner in this category crossed the finish line on Paseo de la Estación at about noon. Carlos Gallego set the record with a time of 3 hours, 58 minutes, and 41 seconds. Sergio Turull won the silver medal six minutes later, while Francisco Martínez finished the race in little over 4 hours and 9 minutes. Mar Mengot crossed the finish line first in the women’s division in 5 hours, 15 minutes, and 38 seconds. María Gálvez came in second 17 minutes later, while Esther Escanciano came in third.

100,000

Oscar Irles won the 100-kilometer “queen event” after finishing in 8 hours, 17 minutes, and 47 seconds. He did this despite the rain starting at lunchtime, which made the course challenging for most competitors. He finished the race with a significant lead over Mario Martínez, the second runner, who arrived 26 minutes later. Three minutes later, Francisco Javier Jiménez won bronze.

With a time of 9 hours, 32 minutes, and 1 second, Alba Reguillo won the gold in the women’s division, followed by Lucía Gonzálvez four minutes later. Third-place finisher Mayer Adsuar was not far behind, arriving four minutes later as well.

The route

One change from previous years under the name Transilicitana is that the esplanade of the reservoir where the Rocío fair is typically held has been made possible as a stop for the participants’ greater comfort. The route passes through the Pantano, the Cau, the Grifo ravine, the beaches of the Elche coast, the Castro mountain, or some of the Elche districts.

At kilometre 32, participants in both modalities will have the opportunity to refresh their energy with paella, which is a novel idea.

Two men, ages 26 and 28, were caught by National Police in Elche (Alicante) on suspicion of breaking into eleven homes while people were inside. They were taken before the judge and told they would be going to jail.

The National Police’s specialised team for robberies started the investigation after getting several reports from people in the northern part of the city. People in these cases said that their homes were broken into while they were sleeping.

The thieves took a lot of expensive things, like mobile phones, watches, computers, credit cards, and cash worth more than 11,000 euros.

A trend emerged when the cases were looked at: the thieves got into the homes by climbing, and they chose homes on the first and second floors. They also broke in at night to make sure the people who lived there were asleep.

During the investigation, it was found that the attackers were caught off guard by the people living in the houses twice, and they quickly ran away when they were found.

It was also found that stolen credit cards were being used fraudulently to get up to 1,000 euros from an ATM.

Police searches helped them figure out who the two suspects were, and once they found them, they arrested them. When their home was searched, electronics and clothes that were used in the thefts were found.

The were taken to court in Elche, where they were told they would be sent to jail.