Forced coin boxes and cut padlocks marked a series of break-ins at Valladolid service stations and vehicle-wash sites. On 29 October, Policía Nacional said it had arrested a man suspected of ten robberies with force; police reported that he had 25 prior police records, and two other people remained under investigation. After appearing before a judge, he was released.
The companies managing the sites reported more than 24 incidents from July onwards. In early October, they warned of a wave of thefts and vandalism that had worsened from the second half of September. The attacks focused on self-service areas, including vacuum machines and wash bays.
Investigators linked the incidents by comparing reports from different locations and times. The suspected offender allegedly cut padlocks and forced open cash boxes, damaging equipment to reach the money inside. The thefts and repairs both caused losses.
The first robbery attributed to him dates to 24 September, when six padlocks on vacuum machines were cut and an attempt was made to force a car-wash cash-box support. Further machines were damaged that day. Overnight, between 24 and 25 September, four wash bays and two vacuum areas were forced open.
Later incidents included a robbery on 29 September with an estimated €600 haul. On 2 October, about €400 was taken from four industrial vacuum cleaners and a self-service wash bay. Around 4am the next day, cash boxes on four vacuum machines and three wash bays were forced; the reported loss was about €600. The three incidents with stated amounts account for approximately €1,600 in alleged stolen cash.
Police also attribute to the suspect a 9 October break-in involving six vacuum machines and four wash bays. Forced cash boxes were found on 12 October, and another robbery was reported on 19 October after locks on washing machines had been torn off.
Police said the repeated incidents had caused financial losses through stolen cash and damage to equipment. The case was sent to the competent judicial authority, which ordered the suspect’s release after he appeared in court. In a separate case, ten defendants agreed to prison terms in the Lugo odometer proceedings.
