Man arrested for attempting to rob a fruit shop in Elche and stabbing the owner’s 15-year-old son

The Mayor of Elche, Pablo Ruz, utilised the plenary session on Monday to request that the government reinforce the National Police in the Carrús neighbourhood and amend the Criminal Procedure Law to facilitate the application of the precautionary measure of provisional imprisonment to repeat offenders, following two attempted robberies that resulted in injuries, one of which was successful.

Yesterday, Tuesday July 29th, the Local Police affirmed that a man has been arrested as the alleged perpetrator of two robberies that involved violence and intimidation that occurred in the same week, as opposed to three weeks apart, as the councillor had stated during the plenary session.

The initial incident took place at a fruit shop, where a 50-year-old man violently entered the establishment in order to seize the cash register and engage in a struggle with the proprietor to seize the money.

The assailant inflicted a severe wound on the palm of the 15-year-old son of the perpetrator. The suspect was ultimately unable to pilfer the money and fled on foot. The victim was transported to the hospital for treatment of his severe injuries.

Threats at an ATM

Municipal security forces report that that same week, officers responded to a robbery with violence that occurred on Calle Hermanos González Selva, near Avenida de la Libertad. The suspect approached a 19-year-old woman while she was withdrawing money from an ATM and threatened her with a knife to force her to hand over the 370 euros she had just withdrawn. Thanks to public collaboration and the description provided, officers located the suspect minutes later, arrested him, and recovered part of the money.

The same person

During the investigation, officers confirmed that both incidents were committed by the same person and were able to seize the weapon used, which had been abandoned during his escape. The suspect has been brought before a court and is charged with robbery with violence, intimidation, and bodily harm.

The Local Police have reported these events one day after the mayor revealed them at the plenary session, where he called for greater action against repeat offenders in Carrús. According to Local Police figures, data from the first half of the year show that 30% of those arrested have prior records for similar offences.

In recent days, and after the police blockade was activated in the neighbourhood, the spotlight has once again been placed on this district. First, in a public appearance with the Chief Commissioner of the Local Police, César Zaragoza, to provide detailed figures on police actions during the first half of the year in that district, and then, at the Local Security Board, an exclusive item was introduced on the neighbourhood’s specifics after the announcement of the security measures for festivals.

Letter

Although the Government Subdelegate, Juan Antonio Nieves, was present at last week’s meeting, it was last Saturday when Ruz wanted the need for reinforcements put on record in writing, and sent a letter to Nieves demanding urgent measures in response to the “uptick in crime incidents perpetrated by repeat offenders, especially concentrated in the Carrús neighborhood.”

Following this request, the plenary session again debated the Mayor’s proposal along these lines, and the Elche Mayor also did not want to overlook the recent arrest of a man for setting fire to his own home in a building with numerous residents and then fleeing.