The National Police have clarified that they have conducted fresh checks at recreational facilities in the so-called English sector of Benidorm last week in collaboration with agents from the Local Police and the Unit Attached to the Valencian Government.
According to a statement from the police department, there were specifically two new searches on businesses on Calle Gerona in this popular tourist location. “In addition to guaranteeing the safety of citizens,” the goal is to end drug sales and distribution in this region, which contains “a significant number of nightlife establishments.”
These additional measures, according to the police, are an extension of the previous local police operation that resulted in the arrest of 80 individuals for alleged involvement in drug trafficking and membership in a criminal organisation. Following an investigation, a number of retail drug sales locations connected to popular tourist and local entertainment facilities were dismantled. The inspections conducted on Thursday are unrelated to the business owners detained during the earlier police operation because they were conducted at two distinct establishments.
The suggested penalty
Officers processed a number of suggested sanctions for administrative violations pertaining to safety and drug possession as a result of the inspections. In particular, one institution was cited for possessing drugs and narcotics, three for possessing guns, and one for possessing pepper spray and drugs.
“These types of inspections complement the investigative work carried out in recent months against criminal groups based in the area, detected through operations in which significant quantities of drugs and material related to this illicit activity had already been seized,” the security force noted. The National Police’s Attached Unit, for its part, prepared reports for non-compliance with safety and health regulations in one of the premises, which was sanctioned with a serious report for lacking civil liability insurance and for failing to comply with safety and health measures.”
The operation that was carried out a few days ago “has been extended” to encompass this Thursday’s operation, he continued. More than 32,000 euros in cash, 40 walkie-talkies, 16 cell phones, six pepper sprays, brass knuckles, two magnetic drug-concealing boxes, 23 grams of dose-prepared cocaine, 2 grams of ecstasy, 63 grams of cutting agent, and 2 grams of marijuana were all found on that particular occasion.
Additionally, “the close collaboration between the various police forces involved” was highlighted by the police. “This coordination allows us to intensify surveillance of the city’s entertainment venues to ensure compliance with current regulations for these types of establishments, which are crucial for the safety of their patrons, such as maximum capacity limits, the existence and validity of liability insurance, fire safety measures, and health and safety protocols,” they said.
Thus, he continued, “the proposed sanctions for non-compliance with the Citizen Security Law against several security employees of the establishments, who were found in possession of pepper spray and unauthorized iron weapons”, seek to prevent “possible violent actions in an area as sensitive as nightlife, while at the same time aiming to prevent behaviors that tend to facilitate or tolerate drug trafficking in the area”.
Finally, the police force has pointed out that, “the National Police are aware that these measures are being well received by numerous customers and residents, not only in this area, but also in other leisure areas of the Alicante province, who demand a safer leisure environment free from this type of criminal activity, given that many of the police interventions carried out in these areas are related to fights and other disturbances in the vicinity of the premises, as well as with the trafficking and consumption of narcotics.”
“In order to continue guaranteeing public safety and the rights of leisure users in the city, as well as the residents of these areas, these investigations and joint operations will continue sporadically in the leisure areas of the province of Alicante, thus intensifying police work in anticipation of the imminent arrival of the summer season,” he said.