FIVE members of a luxury watch robbery gang operating across Spain have been arrested at tourist apartments in the Calpe area of the Costa Blanca.
The Policia Nacional said the men aged between 19 and 33 years had records for similar crimes and were all Moroccan nationals.
All five have been placed into pre-trial custody after being charged with three violent robberies in Madrid, Benidorm, and Puerto Banus in Malaga province.
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The ABC newspaper reported that the crew operated in wealthy districts and tourist areas looking for victims with high-value watches.
Police in Madrid opened a probe on April 17 when a complaint was received over the theft of a luxury Richard Mille watch worth around €500,000.
The snatch happened in the doorway of the Ritz Hotel in the capital’s Retiro district.
When the victim arrived at the hotel, one of the gang ripped the watch from his wrist, while three of his henchmen kept guard, before they fled.
Investigators two days later heard about a similar robbery at Puerto Banus at around 4.30am on Avenida de Jose Banus.
The thieves though only walked away with a fake Rolex.
On April 22, another watch snatch took place on the street in Benidorm- on Avenida de Filipinas.
A passer-by was punched and a Rolex worth nearly €13,000 was stolen.
Detectives managed to also link the suspects with a theft Iast December of an €80,000 watch on a road in Madrid’s Centro district.
Officers discovered the thieves were staying in holiday apartments in Calpe where they were probably planning their next robbery.
Besides the arrests, two high-end Rolex watches were recovered along with a fake.
One of the expensive timepieces has already been returned to its owner.
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