Smash and grab raids, robberies at knifepoint and theft from shops as they are being shut up for the night are all on the wane in Marbella. Although these incidents still form part of the urban landscape in any busy town or city, the latest statistics provided by Marbella Local Police are optimistic.
Compared with 2004, a year in which 372 establishments had to cope with unwanted visits from burglars or robbers, last year there were almost 100 fewer such incidents. That translates as a decrease of 25.5 per cent in raids on shops and businesses which is a very hopeful statistic, especially in view of the fact that business currently falling off.
According to Rafael del Pozo, Superintendent at the Local Police Station, 2004 was an especially bad year for robberies at shops, but the upward trend has been broken for two reasons. He stressed that one of them is that certain steps have been taken in conjunction with the National Police Force, such as weekly meetings to discuss the main security problems in the town. The other factor, he explained, “is that we have reduced the number of police officers dealing with traffic and the public to concentrate more on preventative patrols in areas where there are a lot of shops and housing developments.”
Marbella and Costa del Sol News Article from Spain courtesy of Sur in English
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