The Mossos d’Esquadra are redoubling their efforts to confront copper theft after the chaos unleashed in Rodalies by a theft of this material from the railway infrastructure on May 12, coinciding with election day in Catalonia. In a meeting held this Wednesday and chaired by Chief Commissioner Eduard Sallent, the regional police agreed to extend the current level 2 out of 3 of the plan that regulates this matter, the so-called Specific Operational Plan (SOP) ‘Metall’, to all of Catalonia, Until now active since the end of February in the North and South metropolitan police regions, that of Camp de Tarragona.
Of course, the police authorities warn, as Prefectural Commissioner Rafel Comes pointed out today, that the problem of copper theft will be “difficult to solve in the short term” so “a comprehensive approach and a more thorough diagnosis will be necessary.” beyond what is strictly police.” In this sense, Comes has pointed out that it will probably be necessary to “rethink” the need to carry out legislative reforms and obtain “more inspection tools” regarding waste management centers.
Precisely, the police authorities will focus on those scrap yards that do not comply with the regulations, a minority of the 326 companies in the sector that would represent 10%, as reported by the Mossos. For those who act irregularly and in “collusion with metal thieves”, the police will apply a “zero tolerance” policy with an increase in inspections, of which 16% of the 312 carried out in 2023 ended in violations. . So far this year, 172 inspections have been carried out and the most common irregularities are related to omitting and communicating data when completing mandatory records.
Among other measures, coordination with railway operators will be improved when communicating incidents in real time and those caused by voltage drops on power lines. According to data from the Mossos, Adif complaints for copper theft on the railway network have grown by 31% during the last year, with a total of 263 presented between May 2023 and April 2024 compared to 199 in the same period. former.
On the other hand, aerial surveillance will be implemented preventively through aerial means with helicopters and the use of drones, which will also be activated at night. In addition to more controls on access to industrial estates, the prosecutor’s office will be asked to request restraining orders from railway facilities for repeat offenders.
Police investigations indicate that thieves are usually part of a criminal network that do not act alone and 75% of those arrested have a criminal record. During last year – from May 2023 to April 2024 – 271 arrests were made, 18% more compared to the same period of time the previous year, the Mossos detail.
