Walter Finch
FOR years, Barcelona’s reputation as Europe’s bag-snatching capital has left residents and tourists exasperated, as thieves seemed to operate with impunity – with the police not wanting to know.
Now, at last, Catalunya’s regional police, the Mossos d’Esquadra, claim to have struck a major blow against the pickpockets.
The force says it has dismantled several organised groups dedicated to the trade in stolen mobiles – and recovered more than 1,000 devices in a series of operations carried out this summer.
And in a move that will pleasantly surprise thousands of victims, the Mossos have launched an online database where people can check if their handset is among those seized.
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By entering the device’s IMEI number – the unique identifier every phone carries – victims can see if theirs has been recovered and follow instructions to reclaim it.
A police spokesperson said: “If your phone appears on the list, you can follow the instructions to recover it.”
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The search tool can be found in the ‘Services and Procedures’ section under ‘Recovered Mobile Phones’ on the Mossos website.
The breakthrough follows years of criticism that Barcelona had become a haven for thieves who brazenly targeted partygoers, tourists and commuters in broad daylight – or after late night parties.
Many were even dissuaded from reporting the phone stolen by the very police meant to investigate, who used scare tactics telling victims it could take up to six hours to fill out the forms.
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The Mossos now insist their crackdown is part of a broader strategy to choke off the stolen-phone trade, which the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime warns often funds wider organised crime.
Other countries have pioneered similar systems – such as the UK’s ‘Immobilise’ registry – to help reunite victims with stolen property.
Whether Barcelona’s long-suffering residents and visitors will feel the tide has finally turned remains to be seen.
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