Costa Blanca
Elche gets six homes to use in case of social emergencies

The Local Government Board gave the go-ahead to buy six homes owned by SAREB so that they can be fixed up as part of a scheme to build more public housing that is paid for by the State Plan for Access to Housing 2022–2025, also known as the ADHA Plan.
Celia Lastra, Councillor for Social Action, said that in February 2024, the Local Government Board agreed to ask for a subsidy to buy these six homes owned by SAREB. This was because the council wanted to buy these properties to increase the number of public housing units and put them on a rental or transfer of use regime with a maximum rent or transfer price for use, especially for vulnerable groups.
With the help of the 342,500 euro grant, these 6 homes in various parts of the town were bought. “This purchase increases the number of public housing units in Elche and, most importantly, we will have more housing options under a social rental regime and/or transfer of use for emergency housing,” Lastra said. These homes are meant to help families who are housing insecure and can’t afford to rent at market rates because of their income.
The meeting also agreed to the free transfer of the “Hort de Malena” palm grove, which is in the middle of the city, next to the Tower on the road to the Mills, and surrounded by public gardens.
As stated by Inma Mora, the City Council’s goal is to restore and raise the value of the traditional homes and buildings in the “Hort de Malena” palm grove so that people can learn about and share the historical and cultural values that these buildings and homes represent, as well as the palm grove itself and its water systems. There will be no changes to the deal for 10 years.
It has also been cleared to build the Maestro José Toro social centre in Torrellano, which will be situated between the streets of Libertad, Alcudia, Astronautas, and Violeta. As part of this project, a new 1,900-square-meter space will be built to serve more than 7,000 people from the Torrellano, Santa Ana, Balsares, Saladas, and Jubalcoy areas.
The new cultural and social centre will have two floors. The first floor will have a big hall that can fit 466 people, 350 on the ground floor and 166 in the amphitheatre.
The Torrellano social centre project has been approved by the Local Government Board.
The reading room/library and the amphitheatre for the assembly hall will be on the first floor, along with the association offices and music school. The OMAC, cafeteria, and assembly hall will be on the ground floor.
The Civil Aviation report has now been given to the City Council. This is something that the municipal company Pimesa needs in order to be able to put out the bids for the building contract next week.
The Governing Board did agree to the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility’s request for direct aid for passenger transport. This will lower the prices of transport passes and multi-trip tickets for urban public transport services for the first half of 2025, from January 1 to June 30. They also agreed to make a deal with the service concessionaire to carry out the aid. With these direct helps, the price is cut in half, and the City Council pays for an extra 20%.
As one of the things that wasn’t on the list, the contract for the adaptation works at the central interchange of Doctor Caro and Alfredo Llopis streets has been extended for two more months, until April 11.
InvoLUCRA SL, the winning bidder, said, “They have proposed this extension because, once the urban bus shelter had been moved and the second section of Calle Alfredo Llopis had been torn down, services were found to be in use that were not reflected in the plans that were available for the preparation of the project.” This meant that the foundations and slabs of the two pergolas in that section had to be moved around to fit the available space. This caused the project to be delayed, and the stormwater network had to be moved to a new well that had to be built in the middle of the street.
The project has an investment of about 900,000 euros and is partly paid for by European Next Generation funds.
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Costa Blanca
Man arrested in Benidorm for exploiting unauthorised immigrants

The National Police arrested a man in Benidorm on suspicion of violating workers’ rights. The suspect hired undocumented immigrants for construction jobs and then threatened to alert authorities about their condition in order to exploit them.
The police inquiry began after they received information about the potential hiring of illegal immigrants in construction. Following early enquiries, it was determined that numerous nationals were working on a villa construction site in Benidorm, the majority of them without work or residency permits. Apparently, the employer who recruited the workers did not pay them and threatened to denounce them for unlawful employment.
Thus, the investigators’ initial steps concentrated on ascertaining the workers’ working circumstances and validating the identity of the person in charge of the hiring.
During surveillance by National Police personnel, it was discovered that a total of 15 people worked on the building site, ten of them were illegal. The primary person in charge of the project was also recognised.
The main suspect’s tactic consisted of continuing to hire persons who were in Spain illegally to work on the construction site, threatening to report them for their irregular status if they sought a salary.
Once the suspect’s illicit activity was proven, he was arrested for allegedly violating workers’ rights.
At the time of the arrest, an investigation of the construction site discovered a lack of needed safety equipment. Seven workers were found as working without proper personal protective equipment, putting their physical safety at risk.
Investigators also discovered that the building lacked the required building permit, indicating that it was not authorised to carry out the activity.
The detainee was taken before the Benidorm Investigating Court.
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Costa Blanca
Two men arrested for drug trafficking in Benidorm

According to police sources Yesterday, Friday 21st March, two men were arrested in Benidorm (Alicante) on suspicion of drug trafficking in a pub in the city’s English district, where they allegedly hid the drugs in fire extinguishers and cisterns in the establishment’s toilets.
During the raid, officers discovered 85 packets MDMA, ecstasy, cocaine, and marijuana. Quique Tortosa, spokeswoman for Benidorm Local Police, said that the drugs were “hidden in fire extinguishers, toilet cisterns,” and under the establishment’s cash register. The arrested persons were allegedly protecting the drugs inside the premises, and officers recovered the cash they were carrying, which appeared to be “the proceeds of sales transactions,” Tortosa explained.
The operation is part of the Benidorm Local Police Response and Prevention Group’s daily inspections of the city’s leisure establishments. Themen have been turned over to the National Police for any required investigations.
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Costa Blanca
Car thief arrested in Aspe

A 35-year-old thief has been arrested for a succession of vehicle break-ins on the streets of the Alicante town of Aspe.
The man, a Spanish national, was apprehended by the Civil Guard after an investigation was initiated in response to an anomalous increase in this type of crime in the municipality.
The suspect employed a modus operandi based on observation. “He would steal valuables by breaking windows or exploiting unlocked cars when no one was present,” the police explained.
The burglaries persisted without interruption, and they even obtained access to a video that a witness had captured, in which a man was observed tampering with the interior of a vehicle.
The suspect, a criminal with a history of similar offences, was identified by the authorities as a result of the images. Simultaneously, investigators identified that certain stolen items were being advertised on online trading platforms, which expedited the investigation.
The operation was successfully concluded with the detection of the individual and the recovery of numerous stolen items that were being sold online, thanks to the cooperation of neighbours and the efforts of the officers. A transverse flute, a violin, and numerous radio transmitters were among the items.
The suspect was ultimately apprehended at his residence, where additional items were confiscated, such as digital storage devices and eyeglasses. All of these items have been deposited in official custody at the court’s disposal, pending potential identification.
The detainee has been presented before Novelda Investigating Court No. 1, which has ordered his release on bail.
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