200,000 euros' worth of jewellery stolen from Marbella villa

After the death of his father shortly before the pandemic, Manuel Giménez, 38, decided to move in with his elderly mother in the villa in Marbella where the family had lived all their lives. They had always felt safe there, but now that has changed, and they want to move. The reason: thieves have stolen more than 200,000 euros' worth of jewellery, they claim.

It happened on the evening of 1 June. Since she became a widow, Manuel's mother hardly ever leaves the house, but that day she went to dinner in Puerto Banús. Manuel was out with a friend, and also needed to do some shopping at the supermarket.

Manuel returned to the villa, which is located in the Nueva Andalucía area, at about 10pm and went to get his toothbrush and a jumper.

According to the police complaint, he entered through the garage door and heard a noise, "as if someone was throwing shoes on the floor". He then saw two men come out of the kitchen door and run away.

Manuel tried to catch up with them and was able to grab one of them by the shirt, but was unable to stop him. He did manage to snatch a white cap that the man was wearing, which has an anchor symbol on it - he picked it up with gloves and put it in a bag as evidence.

"The only thing I ask is that they take DNA samples from the cap, because with it they have the perpetrator; I thought that this was immediate, but apparently it takes months," Manuel said.

The villa was completely trashed; no room was left unchecked. The family estimated that the thieves were inside their home for almost two hours.

Manuel went the next morning to the National Police station in Marbella to file a complaint, estimating that the jewellery stolen was worth about 50,000 euros. Later, after making a more detailed inventory and checking all the rooms, he increased that figure to more than 200,000 euros.

"My mother is completely traumatised. It's no longer the financial aspect; it's the sentimental value they have for her, because they are the memories of a lifetime, of my father," Manuel said. They are now going to move to another house where they will feel safer, he added.

The robbery unit of the National Police is investigating and, thanks to the testimony of a witness, has arrested a man for his alleged involvement in the burglary. The search for the second person involved in the robbery is ongoing.