Five suspected pickpockets, believed to be part of a transnational network, have been placed in preventive detention after the Public Security Police detected one of their crimes in Belém, Lisbon. Four were arrested at the time of the crime, while the fifth was apprehended later at his residence. The group consists of three men and two women.
The Lisbon Metropolitan Command of the Public Security Police (Cometlis) disclosed that the incident occurred on Wednesday, involving four of the suspects who followed “a tourist as she ascended the stairs of the underpass near the Padrão dos Descobrimentos in Lisbon.”
The authorities explained that “while the two women strategically placed themselves in front of her to hinder her movement, the two men stood behind her, with one opening her bag and stealing her wallet before turning back.”
“Investigators from the F3C, a special force of the Public Security Police tasked with combating this criminal phenomenon, observed the pickpockets’ actions and followed them to Praça do Império, where three of the pickpockets were preparing to enter a vehicle with the fifth pickpocket inside, ready to drive them away for a quick escape,” detailed the Cometlis.
In light of the situation, the investigators apprehended the four pickpockets involved with the tourist. It was “impossible” to detain the fifth pickpocket at the time, as the last member of the group had separated from them, taking the victim’s bank cards.
During the proceedings, officers verified that the car used by the fifth suspect to flee was rented. The group used the vehicle for “transportation and escape from the sites of the thefts.”
Cometlis also discovered a touch panel equipped with a bank card reader, “a device suspected of being used for the immediate execution of monetary transactions” with the stolen cards.
While out of police sight, the fifth suspect went to an ATM and made eight withdrawals of 150 euros, amounting to 1,200 euros. Subsequently, the suspect was located and detained at his residence. The withdrawn amount from the ATM that day was recovered and returned to the victim.
“Investigators realized they were dealing with a highly sophisticated and organized group of pickpockets, as evidenced by their use of rented vehicles, their mode of operation, and possession of some advanced technology,” Cometlis emphasized.
The note indicated that two of these pickpockets had a history of such thefts, while the remaining “three had just arrived in Lisbon.”
The pickpockets operate not only in tourist areas, and Cometlis noted that in July, an analysis conducted over 24 hours led to the detention of six pickpockets on July 14, as detailed by the security force.
One case occurred on July 14 in the Baixa Pombalina area where “four female pickpockets, aged 27 to 36” were detained. The second situation took place in Belém, where two other women were ‘caught’ by the PSP.
A group of four pickpockets was operating “in a coordinated manner” in Baixa Pombalina, with the stolen goods being returned to the victim, a tourist.
The other two were also active in the Belém area, similar to this group now under preventive detention.
