The Guardia Civil has dismantled a criminal organisation specialising in the theft of safes from agricultural and commercial businesses across southern and eastern Spain following a major multi-provincial investigation.
The operation, codenamed “SEGURU-FASTUTA”, was carried out jointly by the ROCA rural crime unit based in El Ejido (Almería) and investigators from the Guardia Civil station in Villena (Alicante). Two suspects have been arrested, while three others already serving prison sentences are also under investigation in connection with the gang.
According to investigators, the group operated in the provinces of Almería, Málaga, Granada, Murcia and Alicante, targeting companies with high levels of cash activity. Detectives identified a clear pattern linking a series of break-ins at agricultural and commercial premises between November 2024 and January 2025.
Police say the gang was highly organised and used sophisticated counter-surveillance techniques to avoid detection and monitor police activity. Members travelled using multiple vehicles and frequently fitted stolen number plates in an attempt to evade identification and frustrate investigations.
The criminals specialised in forced-entry robberies focused on opening company safes and stealing large sums of cash. In total, officers have linked the group to 11 separate offences, including nine robberies carried out across the affected provinces.
Following months of surveillance and forensic analysis, the Guardia Civil launched simultaneous raids on 16 April. Two suspects were arrested during the operation, one in Asturias and another in Alicante.
A further three individuals were formally placed under investigation while already incarcerated in prison for previous offences committed in the same region.
All five suspects face charges including aggravated robbery, membership of a criminal organisation and document forgery linked to the use of stolen licence plates.
The Guardia Civil said the operation has successfully dismantled a group that had caused “significant alarm” among business owners, particularly within the agricultural sector, where companies were increasingly concerned about organised theft targeting cash holdings and safes.
Case files have now been forwarded to the relevant judicial authorities as legal proceedings continue.
The Guardia Civil has reminded the public that suspicious activity can be reported anonymously through the 062 emergency number, the official Guardia Civil website or the AlertCops mobile application.
