Four arrested in Granada for organising fights between homeless people
The National Police dismantled a network of clandestine fights in Granada involving people in extreme poverty. A 43-year-old drug addict died from head trauma during one of the clashes.
Network of clandestine fights between vulnerable people
According to El Confidencial, the National Police have arrested four people as suspected organisers of clandestine fights in Granada involving people in extreme vulnerable situations. The investigation, which concluded in the second phase of Operation GANT, revealed a network that recruited homeless people with addictions to engage them in combat, resulting in death in at least one instance.
Death in public
The alert came on 12 September 2026, when officers were called to a fight in the area of the North industrial estate of Granada. One of the people was left unconscious at the scene: a 43-year-old Algerian man who lived in homelessness after abandoning a rehabilitation programme. An investigation by the Provincial Brigade of Citizen Security determined that the victim had received a punch to the head during the fight, causing severe head trauma and a serious cerebral haemorrhage with irreversible neurological damage, which resulted in his death.
Operational deployment and search for those responsible
The discovery triggered an emergency action plan initiated on 22 September, with deployment of mounted police, special operations units, and air support. The Homicide Group then took over the investigation. Through citizen collaboration, witness searches and analysis of video material, investigators identified the direct perpetrator of the homicide: a naturalised man of around 24 years, a consumer of controlled substances and homeless, who is already in pre-trial detention.
Hypothesis of motivation by aporophobia
Investigators do not rule out that aporophobia—rejection or contempt towards people in situations of poverty—lay behind the facts. If confirmed, this circumstance could constitute an aggravating factor for a hate crime under the Penal Code. The chief inspector of the Homicide Group emphasised that "the greatest difficulty lay in the almost complete lack of cooperation from victims and witnesses, in addition to the deficiencies of the location for gathering information. These were acts that took advantage of the absolute need of people without protection."
Second phase: identification of organisers
Following the arrest of the direct perpetrator, the UDEV group initiated a second phase to fully identify the organisers, referees and controllers of the fights. The investigation confirmed that the fatal fight was not an isolated incident: both victim and perpetrator had previously participated in other encounters of identical nature. Investigators found indications that the organisers were taking advantage of the participants' addiction to instigate them to fight.
Final outcome
The operation resulted in four additional arrests as suspected perpetrators of homicide and offences against moral integrity, thereby dismantling a network that exploited people in extreme vulnerable situations.
Source: El Confidencial