SHOPKEEPERS AND residents from the Costa da Caparica have complained to authorities after a two-night crime wave went unchecked. Seven shops and homes were broken into on two successive nights, triggering complaints about policing levels in the area.
José Ricardo, head of the movement that petitioned Setúbal’s Civil Governor last year to demand more security, says the situation is unacceptable. “Over just two nights, four homes, a bar, a café and a restaurant were broken into. Since the anti-crime unit left Costa da Caparica and went to Almada, insecurity has increased. The station is old, it has few officials and the intervention corps only stay until midnight on summer weekends,” he says.
The Setúbal Traders’ Association is now planning new appeals, hoping to repeat the success of last year’s campaign that culminated in the detention of six people on suspicion of perpetrating 67 assaults. Shopkeepers are also hoping for the urgent return of Almada’s anti-crime brigade to Costa da Caparica.
A police spokesperson denied that resources were insufficient to deal with crime, claiming that they had received no complaints about the situation.
