Officers from Portimão’s PSP police force have arrested two Moldavian men after they carried out six car thefts in the city over the course of just one night. The presumed thieves, one of whom is already on the criminal register, were caught sitting inside a car that had been stolen in Lisbon.
Police arrived at the scene in Portimão after receiving a call informing them that two suspicious men were loitering near a parked car in the city’s suburbs. Members of the PSP found the Moldavian gang inside a stolen car, toying with the ignition wires.
Officers have now verified that the car was stolen in the Mem Martins district of the capital. They also found a stolen portable computer and other electronic accessories in the vehicle. According to a police spokesman, all the facts indicate that the duo was responsible for six thefts, over two days, in various parts of Portimão, including the city centre, Pedra Mourinha and Boavista.
The alleged assailants used bricks to break the windows of parked vehicles and then stole everything of value. One of the detainees, a 22-year-old resident in Portimão, had already been arrested in Faro and ordered to leave the country. The other suspect, a 23-year-old man, lives in Mexilhoeira Grande.
According to police, car theft is an increasingly common crime, particularly in urban areas. Albufeira GNR officers recently detained three youths suspected of carrying out two dozen robberies from cars parked in the city. Aside from stealing the contents of vehicles, the thieves also vandalised other cars and allegedly beat up a tourist, forcing him to hand over a multibanco card and reveal his PIN so as to withdraw money. The gang in question are currently on remand in prison.
