FOURTEEN people have been arrested in San Fulgencio and San Vicente del Raspeig (Alicante) in connection with a crimewave spanning the whole of the Mediterranean coast involving thefts from cars, burglaries in homes and cash-card cloning.
National Police and Guardia Civil officers, who worked closely with the police forces in Romania and the court in Dénia (Alicante) in their investigations, say the group are thought to be behind at least 100 cases of theft and fraudulent purchases with cloned cards.
They reportedly placed a contraption in the card-slot of cash machines to collect the information found on visas and also set up hidden cameras to film account-holders typing in their PINs.
The gang is believed to be behind a series of break-ins to cars, and also are said to have carried out a number of bag-snatching and pick-pocketing offences whereby one party would ask people directions as they were getting into their cars in supermarket car parks, and another would steal their personal belongings at the same time whilst the driver was distracted.
Many of their car break-ins took place in cemeteries whilst the owners were visiting the graves of loved ones.
Officers say the accused parties were operating along the coast, all the way from Girona in the far north to Granada in the south.
Spanish authorities were alerted in September by police in Romania that the gang could be operating from bases in the province of Alicante, a tip-off that led to three arrests at the beginning of November and another 11 about two weeks later.
They are said to be a very experienced organised crime gang in which each member had strict roles, such as keeping a stock-check of stolen goods, acting as 'look-out' men, manipulating cashpoints, or physically committing the thefts.
A large number of stolen goods have been seized by Spanish police, including television sets, jewellery and lottery tickets.
