Officers of the National Police have arrested three people at Tenerife North airport who were attempting to leave the island carrying numerous pieces of jewellery, allegedly stolen during a series of burglaries in homes in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
The police force reports that the operation has clarified at least 19 criminal acts committed through a “sophisticated method” and clarifies that the arrests took place at the end of May, when the suspects were about to board a flight to the mainland.
Previously, a patrol of the National Police had identified some of them in a neighbourhood of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, which led to the organisation of a device to detect any escape attempt.
The now-detained individuals operated in at least three residential areas of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, following a meticulous pattern to avoid detection.
The Police explain that they used techniques like “slipping” to access entryways without forcing doors, nearly imperceptible marking of homes to verify occupancy, and the “bumping” method (a technique to unlock cylinder locks), to enter without leaving obvious signs of force.
Once inside the homes, they acted with extreme caution to leave no fingerprints or biological traces, focusing on stealing easily transportable valuables.
While two of the detainees carried out the robbery, the third remained outside with surveillance duties to alert of any police presence, explains the Police.
During the search, jewellery weighing approximately 1.5 kilograms of gold was seized, many without settings, which could indicate their destination for smelting abroad.
Thanks to the investigation work, part of the stolen jewellery has been returned to six of its legitimate owners, after their identification at the police station.
The investigation remains open and further arrests are not ruled out.
The National Police has ordered the search for another man linked to the group, who could not be arrested in the initial operation and whose identity has already been included in police databases.
The National Police has thanked citizen collaboration and insists on the importance of reporting any suspicious signs or unusual activity, especially in neighbourhood communities, noting that neighbour cooperation and attention to small details have been key to clarification.
