The Coordinator of Agricultural and Livestock Organizations, COAG Almeria, has requested the Civil Guard to increase their presence in the area because of the increase in thefts that are taking place in various greenhouses in the province, coinciding with the beginning of the fruit and vegetable campaign.
"We must strengthen security in the face of this spike in thefts that is taking place. The Civil Guard personnel assigned so far are not sufficient to face this increase in thefts. We need more people to improve vigilance and respond to more alarms. We are at a point where we have to immediately address this reinforcement," stated Andrés Góngora, provincial secretary of COAG Almería, after meeting with a group of farmers that have informed the organization about the events that have been happening in the field during the last few days.
Concerns in the sector
The alarm around the greenhouses is already evident. Several farmers have warned that the incidence of robberies has increased in recent days and that these incursions are carried out by thieves using violence to access the facilities or causing damage to them once they are inside.
All kinds of agricultural material and belongings typical of the activity have been stolen. The organization calls on the sector to take extra precautions, especially in the case of the acquisition of second-hand products, ensuring their origin properly and sounding the alarm at the suspicion that they may be stolen material.
Direct contact with the Civil Guard
The agrarian organization has held a meeting with the heads of the Civil Guard's ROCA Group, which is in charge of ensuring security in rural areas. The authorities gave the agrarian organization different communication channels to make the relevant complaint once the criminal acts have been completed and to give notice or report of suspected crimes.
The groups' contact numbers are as follows:
GRUPO ROCA NÍJAR: 682 11 53 86
GRUPO ROCA VÍCAR: 660 85 18 82
GRUPO ROCA EJIDO: 659 30 99 65 (also via WhatsApp)
COAG Almeria calls on the Administrations to activate the necessary reinforcements to react quickly to these crimes to tackle the situation before things get worse, the provincial secretary of COAG Almería stated.
Source: coagalmeria.net
