Man arrested in Alcázar de San Juan for copper thefts using the butrón method
The National Police arrested a man with a criminal record linked to an organised criminal group specialising in copper theft from electrical companies.
Criminal network member arrested in Alcázar de San Juan for copper theft
The National Police has arrested a man with a criminal record for crimes against property in Alcázar de San Juan, allegedly implicated in several break-ins at electrical materials establishments. According to elsemanaldelamancha.com, the suspect would be linked to an organised criminal group specialising in the theft of copper and other valuable materials using the butrón procedure.
The arrest took place on Monday 9 November, following an attempted escape by the suspect in a car at high speed whilst breaching traffic regulations. The vehicle was transporting goods stolen from the robberies.
The investigation connected the arrested man to a break-in at an electrical materials company, which the perpetrators accessed by making a hole in a wall or structural element of the building—a technique known as butrón—successfully stealing a significant quantity of copper.
Specialist agents from the Scientific Police Brigade carried out a technical police inspection which proved decisive in advancing the investigation. Analysis of evidence found at the scene, including footprints and vehicle tracks, made it possible to identify the alleged perpetrator and link a cargo van to the theft.
Subsequent investigations connected both the arrested man and the vehicle to other robberies with similar characteristics committed at different locations across the country.
According to the National Police, the arrested man would be one of the members of a criminal organisation whose members acted in a planned and coordinated manner. Before each job, the group studied the characteristics of the target companies, their facilities and security measures, which allowed them to carry out the robberies in a few minutes and subsequently transport the material in high-capacity and high-displacement vehicles.
The investigation remains open to identify and locate the rest of the organisation's members and clarify other break-ins that could be attributed to the group. For the moment, the National Police has not specified the total number of robberies or the economic value of the stolen material.
Source: Google News PR — San Juan