Marbella's luxury shops on high alert over calls for violent raids on Halloween

The impact of what happened in Barcelona and Bilbao, where hundreds of hooded youth went on a rampage, smashing street furniture and looting shops, has led many commercial establishments to anticipate the same. In addition, there have been actual calls for similar acts of violence in the province of Malaga.

The date proliferating on social media and in messaging platforms is 31 October, when anyone can leave the house wearing a mask without attracting attention.

Puerto Banús and San Pedro Alcántara are among the locations these calls circulating on social media mention. The Puerto Banús marina boasts the highest concentration of luxury brands in Spain and is the one that has taken the possibility of a riot most seriously.

Generally speaking, most business owners in Marbella and their representatives remain calm and do not believe that something could happen in the town. "We have an excellent relationship with the police. We haven't eceived any warnings and we trust in their professionalism," representatives from Marbella's centre for tourism initiatives (CIT) said.

Apymespa (the association of small and medium-sized enterprises of San Pedro Alcántara) has taken a similar stance. Both organisations agree that "it is best not to cause alarm" and believe that giving this possibility too much publicity could end up being counterproductive.

The state security forces have activated their surveillance and monitoring protocols in the province of Malaga in response to calls to commit acts of vandalism and engage in clashes on Halloween night. Attention is focused on three towns: Malaga city, Fuengirola and Marbella.

In Marbella, the Local Police had planned to step up security around the activities scheduled for Halloween, but the train tragedy in Urda (Toledo) has postponed the events until the following day, 1 November, meaning there will be no special deployment. Sources within the Local Police have confirmed that the National Police have not requested their assistance nor asked them to deploy more officers.

The company that manages the marina has, for several days now, reinforced the "robust" private security measures, while maintaining "constant contact" with the police. "We are doing everything we possibly can," the company said, pointing out that "a security guard is not a police officer and can only act within the limits of the law".

The luxury brands in Puerto Banús are divided on how to approach Halloween night. The one that has the clearest stance and does not want to take any risks is the Lamborghini dealership.

"I have a feeling nothing will happen, but you never know, so we can't be too careful. We're going to clear out the showroom, starting with the cars and moving on to all the electronic equipment, such as computers and televisions," shop manager Germán Lapeña said.

The rest fall into one of three categories: those who have not yet made up their minds, such as Hugo Boss or Tom Ford, those awaiting instructions from their managers and those considering boarding up doors and shop windows or at least taking some "minor measures" to make the shop "less attractive" to thieves.

This is the case with Loewe. Although it is "waiting" for the decision of its superiors, the shop does plan to "remove the stock, the bags, the clothes… just as we have done when there have been torrential downpours".

"There's no need to panic. It could be a fake call, but among all the fake calls, there might be one that isn't," manager Mónica Ayán said. She explained that the shops in the area are "fortunate" because it is a private site and they have always felt "very safe". "We're on alert, but calm," she concluded.

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