The incidents took place in Garcia while most of the town was concentrated at the night events of the festival, including the concert, the community dinner, and the dance. The Mayor, Blanca López, reported that around 11:30 PM the first notification of a robbery arrived, causing several neighbors to leave the celebration to check the status of their homes.
Initially, three assaults were confirmed, including that of the Mayor herself, and the next day the count closed with a total of five affected homes, spread across three streets. The Mossos d’Esquadra confirmed that on the same day there had been two more robberies in the neighboring town of El Molar.
“"The violation of privacy is very frustrating. When you enter your house and see that they have ransacked the most intimate place, all the clothes, everything on the floor, everything trampled… it is very frustrating."
This incident in Garcia is part of an increase in burglaries in the Terres de l’Ebre, with recent cases in Santa Bàrbara, El Molar, and La Galera. The pattern is clear: thieves take advantage of the cultural and festive agendas of the towns, knowing that the houses will be empty. The modus operandi consists of primarily seeking money and jewelry, leaving the rooms completely ransacked.
López denounced the vulnerability of small municipalities that cannot have their own security forces, such as the Guàrdia Urbana, and the limitation of Mossos d’Esquadra personnel to cover all weekend festivals. To mitigate this situation, the Garcia City Council will hire private security for upcoming festivals and reinforce the installation of security cameras to read license plates.
