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Diari de Catalunya

Kanpai Pista Operation on AP-7 in l'Aldea Against Road Crime

The Mossos d'Esquadra have deployed a special operation in the l'Aldea service area to combat property crimes on major roads.

Generic image of emergency lights reflecting on wet asphalt on a highway.
IA

Generic image of emergency lights reflecting on wet asphalt on a highway.

The Mossos d'Esquadra have carried out a Kanpai Pista operation on the AP-7, specifically in l'Aldea, to enhance security and prevent property crimes on high-capacity roads and their service areas.

This Friday, the Mossos d'Esquadra launched a special operation, named Kanpai Pista, with the aim of ensuring safety on the AP-7 and other major roads across Catalonia. In the Terres de l'Ebre region, the operation focused on the AP-7 service area in l'Aldea, heading north.
The primary goal of this action is to anticipate and respond to property crimes committed by criminal groups operating on main highways, rest areas, and shoulders of the AP-7.
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"This is a phenomenon that concerns us because it affects road safety, as thousands of heavy vehicles, tourists, and travelers circulate daily. This turns the corridor into an ideal scenario for committing crimes."

Josep Baiges · Head of the Mossos d'Esquadra Police Station in l'Ametlla de Mar and of the Kanpai Pista operation in the Terres de l'Ebre Region
Within the framework of the operation in the Terres de l'Ebre, 29 officers participated, identifying 14 vehicles and 17 individuals, two of whom had previous records. Across Catalonia, the operation mobilized 245 agents, with 181 people identified (162 with records) and 151 vehicles inspected, one of which was seized. Additionally, three individuals with a total of 27 prior offenses were arrested.
Baiges noted that the removal of tolls and the general increase in traffic have created a favorable environment for specialized criminal gangs, who are intimately familiar with the routes and move swiftly between regions.
During 2025, over 4,000 criminal incidents were recorded on roads, with a significant portion concentrated on the AP-7. The sub-inspector emphasized that a police response is crucial to guarantee user safety, prevent thefts and aggravated robberies, and pursue habitual offenders.
Since the launch of the Kanpai operation in January, there has been a 37% reduction in known criminal incidents and a 47% decrease in overall incidents compared to the previous year. These results, according to Baiges, demonstrate the effectiveness of the work done, but also highlight the need to maintain pressure to make roads safer.
Among the most common types of crime, Baiges mentioned robberies from trucks while drivers are resting, where thieves use a utility knife to open semi-trailers and steal cargo. Also frequent are robberies from vehicles with windows down, where criminals take visible valuables. Finally, he highlighted Peruvian thefts, which often target elderly individuals, using distraction tactics with false breakdowns to steal their belongings.

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