A couple has been arrested on suspicion of committing burglary and theft crimes targeting residences primarily over the past summer, often victimizing individuals deemed “particularly vulnerable due to age or illness,” as announced by the Public Security Police in a statement on Friday.
According to the Lisbon Metropolitan Command of the PSP, a 49-year-old man and a 44-year-old woman were apprehended on July 21, following an investigation into a robbery and five counts of qualified thefts conducted in the municipality of Cascais between July and September 2024.
One suspect was arrested in Azambuja and the other in Fátima, under arrest warrants issued by the Judicial Authority for crimes not caught in the act.
The detainees worked at a social support institution in Cascais and exploited “their familiarity with the victims from their previous professional activities to visit their homes under the pretense of representing the institution, thereby deceiving the victims.”
Once inside the residences, the suspects typically stole gold items, which they later sold in gold-buying stores.
“Regarding the robbery on September 6, 2024, it is highlighted that the victim, while en route to their home, was approached by the female suspect who attempted, through deceit, to enter the residence. When unsuccessful, the male suspect pulled a gold necklace from the victim’s neck, after which both suspects fled to an unknown location.”
During the investigation, 50 pieces of gold valued at approximately 15,000 euros were seized.
The PSP is continuing efforts to identify the owners of some of the recovered gold items.
Additionally, according to the security force, the detainees, “who are drug addicts and admitted to treatment, were held at the COMETLIS detention cells, and after their first judicial interrogation at the Cascais Court Public Ministry, they were released and subjected to weekly appearances as a coercion measure.”
