Vehicles, work tools, machines and tobacco, money, hams and drinks, goods were stolen from several homes and commercial establishments in various places in the municipalities of Mértola, Moura and Beja.
Last week was a nightmare for populations who feel insecure and fearful of new waves of robberies.
In the early hours of Wednesday, Mina de São Domingos, municipality of Mértola, a restaurant and a butcher shop were the targets of the thieves. In the restaurant, they broke a machine and stole tobacco and money, while several hams were taken to the butcher's. But the “other people’s friends” didn’t stop there and in Nossa Senhora das Neves, county Beja, they entered a recreational society and the target was again a tobacco machine, the packets of tobacco were taken, money and some drinks.
In the early hours of the following day, the target was a restaurant and a cafe, em Moreanes, back in the municipality of Mértola, locality where a supermarket and a Chinese goods store, the cash register machines were smashed and the monetary values inside were taken away.
In the early hours of Friday, the target location was Amareleja, in the municipality of Moura, where the locks of four garages were broken, where three cars were stolen, two light passenger and goods. From one of the garages, the two vehicles that were inside and a third vehicle were taken., taken from another space, It was abandoned by criminals and recovered by the GNR (na photos) who then handed it over to its rightful owner.
Fernando Lampreia, businessman in the tobacco sector operating automatic machines, He was the most affected by the tobacco machines crossing and the theft of packs and money inside them.. “Four machines exploded and between the destruction and what they stole from the interior, the damage is around the 13 a thousand euros", justified to Lidador News (LN).
Military personnel from the GNR Criminal Investigation of the Beja Territorial Command are investigating the thefts and finding out if there is a connection between them, in order to understand if it is the same gang that is carrying out this wave of robberies.
Another identical vacancy three years ago
The tobacco businessman recalls an identical vacancy that occurred three years ago in the Mértola area: “machines exploded, took tobacco and money, At the time there was an alert to the GNR, the individuals were persecuted and later detained in Spain. The seized machines and goods remained there, I received some insurance money”, recalled Fernando Lampreia.
Teixeira Correia
(journalist)
