ISSUE NO. 1407
WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM
21 - 27 JUNE 2012
FRONT EXTRA
Social Security: €34 million lost DURING 2011, there were 5,205 cases of people being employed without legal work contracts in Alicante Province, the highest in Spain, according to the Works Ministry. This is a loss of around €34 million to the Social Security system.
Fake police BLOCKING THE ROAD: Senegalese supporters staged a peaceful sit-down protest following the arrests.
Crackdown on street traders leads to fracas
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By Keith Nicol TORREVIEJA’S ‘looky-looky’ men were once again the target for the Local Police on Monday. This task force has been assigned to tackle the growing number of counterfeit goods on sale in tourist areas. In similar fashion to the raid two weeks ago, when tempers ran high on the waterfront area, the Guardia Civil were once again called in to calm the situation resulting in them detaining five people suspected of assaulting law enforcement officers. The incident occurred at about 1pm on Torrevieja’s Juan Aparicio promenade when a patrol conducting surveillance proceeded to identify themselves to a group of Senegalese men who were offering
goods for sale. According to the police, much excitement ensued, resulting in the pushing and shoving of the agents, and apparently two pedestrians also stepped in to try and calm the situation and help defend the officers. After arresting the assailants, two other Senegalese citizens then began to ‘rebuke and attack the officers’, according to the police report. The detainees were taken to the Guardia Civil barracks in Torrevieja to await an appearance in court. News of the arrests soon spread among the Senegalese community and friends and family, numbering about 80 in total, made their way to the front of the courthouse where they blocked the street by staging a
peaceful, sit-down protest. The Guardia Civil called for back-up, but it was not required. The new Local Police Unit, tasked with taking counterfeit goods off the streets of Torrevieja, has constantly been at odds with the Senegalese community, who seem to the main protagonists when it comes to offering ‘trademark’ items for sale. These include such brands as Gucci, Rolex, Tag, D&G, Ray Ban and Polo. While these luxury goods’ manufacturers would claim that they are losing hundreds of thousands of euros on sales due to this illegal copying, since Ray Bans sell for €6 to €10 for example, the reality of the situation is that some • Turn to Page 4
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FIVE men were arrested in Elche believed to be members of an organized gang posing as police officers to gain access to properties and burgle them.
Abandoned dogs THE number of cases of abandoned dogs in Baix Vinalopo this year has increased compared to last year, according to the area’s society for the protection of animals and plants.
Fire lessons A FREE course in English and Spanish was given to residents in Pinar de Campoverde to identify and extinguish various types of fires and get out of the house.