Albufeira Mayor Desidério Silva wants the extra police officers sent to the Algarve to reinforce security to stay once the summer season ends.
The GNR force in the region was reinforced by more than 260 officers this year to make a total complement of 1,480 men, with Albufeira having more police on patrol than any other town or city.
Despite the beefed up police presence, the city was the target of several criminal events, including a robbery at a hotel by an armed gang and two tourists who died after being assaulted and beaten by attackers.
Desidério Silva argues that crime does not just disappear when the summer ends.
“Policing has to be seen as a regional strategy and can’t just rely on additional reinforcements in the summer season,” he told Lusa news agency.
Many of the crimes reported in Albufeira this summer were committed against tourists, mostly British, leading the UK Government to raise the alert level for the Algarve. However, according to the Mayor, the measures implemented to raise security levels in the tourist hot spot have received a positive response from the British Consulate in the Algarve.
