The arrest of the perpetrators of the perfect robbery of a Prosegur security van, specifically a light vehicle, in the middle of Ibiza’s golden mile last summer, reported exclusively and alone by La Voz de Ibiza, has made it possible to dismantle one of the hypotheses that circulated at the beginning: the existence of internal accomplices among the security guards of the Spanish multinational.
The robbery took place in the vicinity of Avenida Bartolomé Roselló in Ibiza, where there are numerous fashion stores.
Operation Karavan has led to the uncovering of 25 hits perpetrated throughout Spain, involving a total criminal bill of 200,000 euros by an itinerant gang of criminals based in Nice, who traveled in a motorhome to tourist areas, acted and disappeared.
Traveling by motorhome allowed the gang members to go unnoticed. In any case, it is known that they used other rented vehicles in the places where they perpetrated the robberies. The fact that they used numerous false identities allowed them to rent cars without arousing suspicion.
The theft of a safe in a shopping center in Elche was the clue that allowed investigators to connect the dots and connect criminal acts. Images of the coup helped identify the possible perpetrators.
As La Voz de Ibiza has learned from police sources, the National Police investigation in Ibiza has confirmed that the robbery was perpetrated without internal collaboration, by an itinerant gang, perfectly organized and highly professional, which left the island immediately after executing the robbery.
Weeks after acting in Ibiza, the gang acted in Ciutadella de Menorca when they stole 50,000 euros from a security guard of another company who was withdrawing the deposit from an ATM in a tourist area of the municipality.
In this case, the modus operandi of Ibiza was reproduced. They arrived, made an exhaustive monitoring of the movements of a security company, detected the ideal moment to act, perpetrated the coup and disappeared without a trace. Or at least, enough to be arrested at that moment, before leaving the island and with the loot in their hands.
In fact, the money from both hits could not be recovered. As in Ibiza, nobody saw or heard anything.
A robbery with no alarms and no immediate trail
From the outset, it was clear to investigators that they were not dealing with a conventional robbery. All indications pointed to a highly professionalized criminal group that knew very well what they were up to.
Arrive, act and disappear as if by magic. Nobody saw anything as a result of this modus operandi, despite the fact that the action took place early in the morning in one of the most central avenues of the city that never sleeps, especially in summer. It was an invisible and almost perfect robbery. Until the Elche robbery facilitated the investigation.
Vigilantes, under suspicion at the beginning
In the first days after the robbery, one of the most widely circulated hypotheses was the possible involvement of the security guards in charge of the van. This line was fueled by subsequent layoffs at Prosegur, which generated suspicions about possible internal collaboration.
However, the police investigation has clearly ruled out this hypothesis. According to La Voz de Ibiza, none of the guards were part of the gang nor did they actively collaborate in the robbery.
The dismissals are due to malpractice and deficiencies in security protocols, not to direct involvement in crime. These failures were probably identified by the criminals during surveillance and facilitated the theft.
Procedural flaws that facilitated the “invisible theft”.
The investigation has revealed that certain internal deficiencies contributed to the coup being consummated without early warnings. The gang was able to take advantage of loopholes in the procedures, which allowed the money to be stolen without arousing immediate suspicion.
This aspect has led the company to review its protocols and adopt internal measures.
Police encirclement and gang identification
The National Police in Ibiza were able to gather numerous clues about the modus operandi, the gang’s movements and their modus operandi before and after the hit. This work made it possible to identify the perpetrators, follow their trail off the island and culminate in their arrest.
As usually happens in these cases, the security cameras and the testimonies collected together with the traveler’s log offered key clues to clarify the case.
As subsequently published in La Voz de Ibiza, the gang members went to prison, accused of a perfectly planned robbery executed with unusual precision.
The exclusive that foreshadowed the “perfect robbery”.
La Voz de Ibiza was the only media in Ibiza that exclusively reported the existence of the perfect robbery of the security van, when the case was still under maximum discretion and no other local media had reported the event.
Arrested on the Costa del Sol and sent to prison
The investigation culminated on December 30 with the arrest of the four members of the gang in the Malaga town of Benalmádena, after the National Police detected their movement from Nice (France) to the Costa del Sol aboard a motorhome, the same vehicle they used to travel around Spain and commit the robberies. Following their arrest, the four detainees were imprisoned, as confirmed by the General Police Directorate.
A roving gang with 25 crimes solved and 200,000 euros in loot
According to official information, the criminal group is involved in 25 crimes against property committed in different autonomous communities – Comunidad Valenciana, Andalusia, Balearic Islands and Comunidad de Madrid – which generated an economic damage of close to 200,000 euros. Among these events was the theft of 60,000 euros from an armored car in Ibiza, which was key to uncovering the gang’s criminal activity. During the search of the motorhome, the agents seized 24,000 euros in cash, foreign currency, a gold coin, jewelry and numerous electronic devices hidden in hidden boxes in the interior of the vehicle.
