British man chases thieves along the Costa to recover his 30,000-euro Rolex watch

The man, from Mijas, jumped into his car and followed the two criminals, who fled on a motorcycle, until they crashed in Marbella

ÁLVARO FRÍAS / FERNANDO TORRES

Thursday, 26 August 2021, 22:45

A British man, who had an expensive Rolex watch stolen from his wrist in Mijas, chased the alleged thieves along the Costa del Sol to Marbella, to recover his 30,000-euro timepiece.

The 41-year-old was caught off guard outside his house in Mijas in the early hours of Monday, 23 August, when one of the suspects violently snatched the high-end watch from his wrist.

As the thief fled the scene, on a motorbike being driven by an accomplice, the theft victim jumped in his car to give chase.

The pursuit ended in the Elviria area of Marbella when the bike rider lost control and crashed. National Police officers who arrived on the scene found one of the suspects – a 35-year-old Italian man - hiding nearby, who was arrested. After interviewing the British man the 30,000-euro Rolex was also recovered.

The other suspect managed to escape but was later identified and the police believe the pair were part of criminal gang that used the same modus operandi to steal luxury watches.

The motorcycle used to carry out the attempted theft was registered in the name of a third person, a 28-year-old Spanish man, who was also arrested and accused of collaborating, as police say that he was aware of the criminal actions that were about to be committed.