On Friday, Vicente Gutiérrez Sola, the Chief Commissioner of the Torrevieja Local Police, retrieved his possessions from the police station office and departed. He adhered to a ruling that was legally draughted by the Director General of Personnel, Rosana Narejos, resolved by the Councillor for Personnel, María José Ruiz, proposed by the Director General of the Police, Alejandro Morer, and signed by the Councillor Delegate for Police, Federico Alarcón. The resolution stated that he was 65 years old and that the law does not permit security force officers to serve beyond that age.

Superintendent Óscar Cartón has provisionally assumed the role of Local Police Chief. The City Council’s anticipation of an appeal from the affected party and its reluctance to make a definitive decision until it has legal certainty to do so is indicated by the fact that this is a provisional appointment, despite its intention to be permanent.

Yesterday, Gutiérrez Sola, who has a wealth of experience as a local police commander in the province, refrained from commenting on this agreement. He only observed that he was required to examine both the report prepared by the Department of Personnel and the one proposed by the Director General of Police.

Sources say that the former commissioner had sought to extend his duties for a few months beyond April 11th in 2024 in order to fulfil his 38-year and three-month contribution period and receive full pension benefits. This request was made in an internal communication.

The resolution was proposed by Morer, who was one of the two superintendents of the Local Police and second in command of the force until January 31st. He occupied a position below him on the organisational chart. As the director general, he now occupies a position that surpasses that of the former commissioner, serving as a conduit between the political and professional leadership of the Local Police. Gutiérrez, in reality, filed an appeal against Morer’s appointment as a senior official.

Compulsory retirements in Orihuela and Alicante

This change in the Torrevieja local police command structure is in line with comparable developments in larger cities, including Alicante and Orihuela, which are also under the control of the Popular Party. Recently, both Luis Barcala and Pepe Vegara, both from Orihuela, have adopted comparable resolutions and have provided administrative notice to those affected several months in advance. However, the latter will remain in office until after the summer, when they reach retirement age.

Nevertheless, the decree in Torrevieja has only provided Gutiérrez with four days to respond before his 65th birthday, which was on Friday, April 11th.

In 2010, the former chief of the Local Police assumed responsibility for the Torrevieja Local Police, which was then under the supervision of the Popular Party mayor, Pedro Hernández Mateo, and the general director of the area, Javier Mínguez. At that time, the arrivals of Mínguez and Gutiérrez were intended to achieve two objectives: first, to normalise the intricate internal situation within the Torrevieja local police force, which had been impacted by a plethora of workplace harassment cases and legal complaints against commanders for alleged irregularities in the performance of their duties; and second, to re-establish coordination with the civil guard, which had been tarnished by these cases for years. Gutiérrez succeeded in enhancing his relationship with the Guardia Civil, but his efforts did not have a significant impact on the internal dynamics of the force.

The governing team of the Popular Party and the police councillor, who appeared on Friday to provide a detailed account of the governing board’s agreements, have not disclosed any public information regarding the resolution that will retire the current Commissioner Gutiérrez Sola. This is a common occurrence in municipal administrations that are characterised by conflict. Unofficially, this follows the recent retirements of two high-ranking officials, in which Eduardo Dolón’s government denied the extension of their terms.

A general administration technician and a secretary general of the plenary session, both of whom had served for decades at Torrevieja City Council, expressly requested a delay in their retirement age. However, civil service legislation denied their request. The legality of certain resolutions adopted by Mayor Dolón was questioned or warned about by these two officials, whose reports were substantiated by legislation.

At present, the Torrevieja Local Police has 140 officers. In July, an additional 40 officers will be added, bringing the total number of officers to 180. This figure is in line with the anticipated number of officers in a city with a population exceeding 100,000.

Four individuals who specialise in the theft of rear-view cameras from vehicles have been arrested for committing at least 45 burglaries in various regions of the city of Alicante.

The National Police was notified of an increase in reports of this type of incident, which prompted an investigation that culminated in the arrest of four individuals between the ages of 34 and 44.

The stolen cameras were distributed throughout Spain and also sent to Algeria and France, where demand is high due to the scarcity of these types of components.

Investigators discovered a consistent pattern in the reported incidents after analysing all the information they had received, which led them to suspect that the burglaries may have been committed by the same individual.

The primary components that were stolen were rearview parking cameras, which are “high-value and easily marketable components.” Their extraction is both discreet and rapid, making them a frequent target for specialised criminal groups.

Surveillance operations resulted in the apprehension of one of the perpetrators during the commission of one of the robberies in the initial instance. The group’s vehicle, which was utilised to transport the stolen products, was also confiscated.

The criminal group’s modus operandi was reconstructed by investigators during the second phase. The investigation revealed that they operated in a coordinated manner, with one member being responsible for monitoring the area, another for removing cameras from parked vehicles, and a third member waiting in the car with the engine running to aid in their escape.

“The detainees’ true objective was to exploit the brand logo, which was situated on the rear of the boot lid, where the parking assistance camera was located,” they clarify.

The investigators were able to locate the remaining three thieves and arrest them for theft and membership in a criminal organisation.

The detainees have been transferred to the Alicante investigating court subsequent to police investigations.

Yesterday afternoon, Friday April 11th, a fight near Alicante General Hospital resulted in the murder of a young North African man in his 20s and the injury of another with a knife. At the same time, an additional individual, a Spanish national, was admitted to the Emergency Department with injuries. The National Police are currently investigating whether the injury is associated with the assault, as is suspected.

The police are currently conducting an investigation into the circumstances of the assault, which transpired during a fight between multiple individuals. The police have purportedly apprehended one individual for his alleged involvement in the incident, a fact that has not been confirmed by police sources. Witnesses observed numerous individuals fleeing the scene in a vehicle.

The incident transpired in the Plaza de la Cruz Roja in Alicante shortly after six o’clock in the evening, adjacent to a children’s playground on Calle Pintor Baeza. In cases under investigation by the Violent Crime Group of the Alicante Provincial Judicial Police Brigade, a number of individuals who had planned to convene at the location clashed, resulting in two of them being injured with blades. A third individual sustained injuries, but they were not treated at the hospital, according to eyewitnesses.

The National Police have initiated emergency contacts from 112 and have promptly dispatched Citizen Security patrols to the location. The victims were en route to the General Hospital, where they were expected to receive assistance, when one of them collapsed while crossing Calle Pintor Baeza.

Medical personnel arrived at the scene and attempted to revive the victim, who was lying in the middle of the street. Nevertheless, they were unable to save his life. The judicial commission was informed, and Judicial Police and Forensic Police officers arrived at the scene.

Another young Arab man who sustained at least one stab wound has been admitted to A&E with non-life-threatening injuries.

The police are currently investigating whether another Spanish man, who was admitted to the emergency room with a jaw injury, is also implicated in the crime. The two incidents occurred almost simultaneously.

In addition to collecting witness information at Plaza Ajardinada where the incident took place, investigators from the Violent Crime Unit have also visited the Emergency Department to interview the two injured individuals and elucidate the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The perpetrator threw a knife that may have been used in the stabbing in the park square. A boy, who was approximately 10 years old, took the knife and began to perform the “baile del serrucho”. The knife was collected by the authorities upon their arrival in order to analyse it and attempt to obtain the attacker’s DNA.

A man who was present in the vicinity said that, just prior these events, he observed over half a dozen individuals armed with sticks exiting a pub located near the Northern District Police Station. It has not been determined whether this incident is connected to the murder.

This violent death occurs just days after a gunshot in the Virgen del Remedio neighbourhood, during which individuals of Arab descent engaged in a confrontation and one was injured with a knife. In the same vein, a young Arab man was wounded in the back on Calle San Mateo by a fellow countryman who has not yet been apprehended the previous week.