Fear after new wave of burglaries houses in rural areas of Vélez-Málaga

Images captured by security cameras, to which SUR has had access, show three individuals dressed in dark clothes and wearing balaclavas, moving around the interior of a property during the early hours of the morning. In the videos, the suspects can be seen walking around courtyards and entrances to houses while attempting to break into the property and breaking the security cameras.

One of those affected, María (not her real name) told SUR that she, her husband and their two daughters, aged six and ten had been targeted: "We heard the banging on the door with an iron bar and we woke up. We started shouting and luckily they left, but they were about to enter," she explained to SUR.

María explained that the family has lived in the area for three years and that this is the first time they have been burgled. "It was a big scare, we haven't slept since then. My youngest daughter was in bed with us and my eldest daughter hid in the wardrobe. It was very unpleasant, they are very scared," she said.

María told SUR that the intruders did not manage to gain access to the main house, although they did manage to enter a small independent flat located on the same plot. "They broke a window and rummaged around inside, but nothing was taken because there were only boxes, flowers, plates, glasses and fabrics," she explained.

However, they did cause damage to the outside of the property: "They broke a fence that leads to the neighbour," María explained, adding that she quickly alerted the rest of the residents in the area through the neighbourhood WhatsApp groups they have. "I called all the neighbours to turn on the lights. Luckily they [the burglars] left and we didn't get to see them face to face,"

Residents have also criticised how long it takes the police to arrive: "The police took almost an hour to arrive because it is a rural area and it is difficult to get here. Luckily they [the burglars] left and there was no confrontation," María pointed out to SUR.

The National Police are now investigating these new incidents, which are once again causing concern in the rural areas of Vélez-Málaga. Neighbours have been reporting for weeks a growing sense of insecurity and claim that robberies have become a constant in areas such as Valle-Niza, Almayate Alto or Benajarafe. .

It is not the first time this has happened. At the beginning of last April, SUR reported on the latest wave of burglaries in rural homes in the area, also involving four hooded men who acted in the early hours of the morning. At that time, residents reported that the thieves even knocked over security cameras and acted despite the sounding of house alarms. They also damaged the cameras on Thursday 14 May.

These episodes caused scenes of real tension in the neighbourhood. Some residents went so far as to organise impromptu patrols with private cars to guard lanes and country roads, while others used firecrackers and lights to try to scare off intruders.

Residents are calling for greater police presence specifically for rural areas, with patrols adapted to isolated areas that are difficult to access. "Here it is not enough to arrive quickly, quite often they don't even know how to find the houses," a number of affected residents told SUR after the April attacks. Concern continues to grow as burglars no longer target empty houses, but also those with residents inside.