Road Crime in Spain
Day 2 in Spain, Easter Holidays 2017. just filled up with diesel at Lleida services on the AP2 heading to Barcelona. Both me and the Wife enjoying the Sun and the quiet motorway . 5 km down the road BOOM! ...offside tyre on the Swift a total explosive blow out .Just about managed to pull the outfit to a safe stop but not on the very narrow hard shoulder and partially blocking one of the two lanes. Within minutes a new Nissan pulled in front of us .One man in the car looking all official in dayglow jacket and cap (that's what we thought) Very helpful guy shepherded my Wife to a safe place behind the caravan while I placed our warning triangle. The (highways official) then left. You guessed it...... we was robbed , passports, cash, credit cards, camera, tablet even my Wife's spare hearing aid. They did not get our dash cam the Spanish Police did. Arrests are imminent .
Tyre was slashed at Lleda services in away to cause a blowout not a puncture. There was another man hidden in the Nissan, he raided our car while the other was helping my Wife. Naïve certainly, but also lucky it was't worse. Travellers in Spain be warned.
Comments
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Plainsman
I wonder if this might be better posted in the discussion area in the European Sites and Touring section as its likely to be seen by more people. I can move it for you but I think the photo might not transfer over?
David
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Plainsman
I have moved it for you and even the photo has transferred although not as large as previously.
David
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This seems to be a common scenario - and a few years ago we met a couple in a hotel in Girona who had been victims, that day, of exactly the same thing. They were in a French registered car, so it's not just happening to Brits. It's been the subject of many similar posts over the years, and the way they operate seems to be always the same.
The usual advice is immediately they stop to get your mobile phone out, take a photo, and then pretend to be phoning someone...........at which point they take flight.
Let's hope they are arrested as a result of your dashcam evidence, but it may be that they are quickly back on the streets (or autoroutes) again. And at least those of us reading this know exactly who to look for - and keep our car doors locked!
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It is just a small point, but we keep all our cash, passports etc in a safe in the caravan and only have our phone in the car. All the other stuff, iPad, laptop are stashed in their "traveling" places around the caravan. It will take someone more than a few minutes to rout them all out and break into the safe.
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I prefer to keep stuff with me in the car in case of accident to the caravan and the resulting matchsticks! But then my dogs guard the car fairly well and in dangerous places I don't let the car out of my sight. I do have a safe bolted in place in the caravan too but haven't used it in ages. Possibly wouldn't have lost the dog passports if I had used the safe but there you go!
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