A 28-YEAR-OLD man has been arrested in Benidorm for robbing four elderly woman by snatching chains and jewellery which they wore around their necks.
The Policia Nacional say they are trying to clarify his involvement in at least seven other identical crimes.
The thief made special journeys from his Alicante home to carry out the robberies.
READ MORE:
- Gold chain snatcher gets bitten by victim and is caught by chasing pedestrians in Spain’s Mallorca
- Gang snatches over 100 bags from elderly people and withdraw €75k from their stolen bank cards in Spain
The police got several complaints over a short period of time from ‘chain snatched’ victims.
The man chose his targets based on their age and the strong likelihood that they would not put any much resistance.
He approached them from behind and by surprise to minimise any kind of defensive reaction.
The items he wanted were gold chains and other jewellery that the victims wore around their necks.
He would wrench them off with a strong pull and then try to pawn off the stolen goods.
In some cases, the victims suffered minor injuries.
Police inquiries linked him to four Benidorm street robberies involving a gold chain with two rings, as well as gold chains and a gold and diamond necklace- valued at €3,800.
All of the targets were women and were aged 67 and 78 years.
The thief’s luck ran out when an off-duty security guard called the police when he spotted him trying to rob a 67-year-old man.
Officers found him and he was charged with four counts of robbery with violence, and one attempted robbery.
A search was carried out at his Alicante home where police discovered several gold chains and necklaces, presumably from other ‘snatch’ robberies as some of the chains were broken.
Click here to read more Benidorm News from The Olive Press.
