Costa Blanca

More than 1,000 sexual attacks happened in Alicante last year

There have been over 1,000 sexual crimes in the province of Alicante in just one year. This is the first time since records began that this has happened. Assaults and abuse like these keep happening and are getting worse every year. In the last 15 years, they have doubled.

The latest information from the Ministry of the Interior shows that this crime adds to Alicante’s list of criminal cases, bringing the total to 1,008 cases. This is 5.1% more than the 959 cases that were recorded in 2023.

Because the number has gone up by almost 100% in just 15 years, the trend is very scary. Since 2010, when 506 cases were reported, it has steadily increased, with only a few ups and downs, until it reached its all-time high in 2024.

This rise has not been straight up. For example, from 2015 to 2020, the number of sexual crimes rose by 25%. From 2020 to 2024, it rose by 76%, showing that the rate of abuse is rising more quickly.

In Alicante, crimes against sexual freedom can be broken down into two main groups. As for sexual assaults with penetration, there have been 222 reports, which is a small rise of 0.5%. Also, the number of “other crimes against sexual freedom” has gone up by 6.5%.

Crimes by cities and towns

Not all parts of the province have the same number of crimes against sexual freedom. Some cities and towns have seen worrying rises, while others have been able to stop the flow.

Out of the 141 towns, Sant Joan d’Alacant has the most problems. From 5 cases in 2023 to 14 cases in 2024, there was a scary 180% rise.

Almoradí is next. There have been 14 sexual crimes there, up from 7 cases before. Calp (+91.7%), L’Alfàs del Pi (+75%), and San Vicente del Raspeig (+72%) are the others.

On the bright side, there are places that have stopped these wrongdoings. Villena has cut sexual crimes by 60%, Altea by 46.2%, and Benidorm by 23.4%. These are the three towns with the best figures.

How Alicante stands

In Alicante, there were 0.7% fewer crimes last year than the year before, which is a small drop in crime overall. Not all signs are good, though. While property crimes and online crimes have stayed the same, some violent crimes have risen alarmingly, especially murders, which have almost doubled in just one year.

One of the most disturbing facts is that the number of killings and wilful homicides has gone up from 11 in 2023 to 20 in 2024. After this 81.8% rise, there have been all kinds of crimes, from violence against women to settling old scores, like the murder of a Russian pilot by Russian spies.

But thefts in homes and businesses have gone down by 7.8%, and break-ins to homes have gone down by 9.2%. However, crimes involving violence and fear have gone up by 10.5%.

In the area of hacking, which already makes up a big part of the whole, there is some good news. The province is still pretty stable, and there have even been small drops in computer fraud (-1.9%), which is a small win after the recent trend that couldn’t be stopped.

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Costa Blanca

21 expensive cars that were stolen in the U.S. were found Valencia port

Together with the US Container Security Initiative, the Guardia Civil and the Tax Agency found 21 high-end cars that were stolen in the U.S. and were on their way to Africa in the port of Valencia. The cars, which were worth a total of €1.1 million, were reported stolen and were being moved in containers.

The cars were stolen in the U.S. and were on their way to different places in Africa, stopping in Valencia’s port. Risk analysis units made up of Guardia Civil and Tax Agency officers were able to find several packages that might not have had the goods that were claimed to have been inside.

With the help of the information gathered, it was confirmed that stolen cars that had been in Valencia on their way to the United States had actually arrived. The groups that ship stolen cars either traded legally declared cars for stolen ones or directly declared the stolen cars as other goods, like furniture or mattresses.

In the past few weeks, 21 vehicles have been found and will be sent back to their home countries to be given to their original owners.

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14 immigrants were saved on a boat 45 miles off the coast of Alicante

On Wednesday, 2nd April, the Maritime Rescue ship Salvamar Leo saved 14 immigrants who were travelling in a boat about 45 miles from Alicante.

In the middle of the afternoon on Wednesday, Maritime Rescue sent out its Helimer 223 helicopter and the Salvamar Leo, which is based in Alicante, to save the people on a small boat.

Their journey began on the Salvamar Leo, which took them to the Temporary Assistance Centre for Foreigners in the port of Alicante. There, the Red Cross took care of them.

The Red Cross says that all of the refugees they saved were men, and two of them were younger than 15 years old. They were all healthy after being treated.

The National Police took over the refugees after getting help from the Red Cross. They are now trying to find the boat’s captain so they can arrest him, as is normal in these situations.

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Dénia wrestler arrested in connection with a network that smuggled 300 kilos of cocaine from Ecuador

The National Police’s Drugs and Organised Crime Unit arrested a famous mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter from Dénia. He was part of a gang that was partly broken up in August over a shipment of 300 kg of cocaine from Ecuador that came into the port of Valencia. The fighter from Dénia is one of five people who were caught by police. Along with nine other gang members who were already in jail at the time, they are now in jail.

The man who was arrested in Dénia is thought to be the trusted man of the gang’s leader, who is also an MMA fighter, and the person who is said to have worked as a go-between in the operation.

Levante-EMV also says that the broken-down network is linked to another shipment of 490 kg of cocaine that came into the port of Valencia in April of last year.

The five people who were just caught went before Valencia’s Investigative Court No. 20 yesterday, April 3rd.