Two arrested in Fuengirola over alleged Blocus looting plans

National Police arrested two young people in Fuengirola on Saturday night on suspicion of preparing acts of vandalism linked to Blocus. One suspect is a minor; the other allegedly ran a messaging group that encouraged looting and damage to shops on the Costa del Sol.

The force announced the arrests on Sunday 1 November. It said officers found the pair as they were preparing to carry out vandalism in Fuengirola, following investigations conducted during the week.

Police allege that both were active in messaging channels urging attacks on businesses in Fuengirola and Marbella. The adult was the administrator of a chat called Blocus Fuengirola and encouraged other members to cause damage, according to the police account.

Arrests during Halloween policing operation

Investigators identified the two suspects before arresting them during Saturday night’s preventive deployment. Police suspect them of conspiracy to commit public disorder, conspiracy to commit property offences and membership of an organised group.

The arrests take the National Police total to seven young people detained in four days over suspected links to Blocus. That figure covers investigations in Valencia, Bilbao, Málaga and Fuengirola. elDiario.es reports that a 20-year-old had also been arrested elsewhere in Málaga province.

Online calls and the Halloween police response

Blocus takes its name from student blockades in France. In Spain, the label has been used for anonymous calls circulated through TikTok, Telegram and WhatsApp, according to El Español.

The Fuengirola arrests followed heightened surveillance ahead of Halloween. Authorities had stepped up monitoring in major cities after disturbances in central Barcelona on 24 October. El Español reports that those disturbances resulted in more than a hundred arrests, mostly involving minors, and damage to dozens of shops.

Despite the online calls, El Español reported that Halloween night saw little disorder under the increased police presence. Its account described around twenty arrests and more than 2,200 people having their identities checked during the wider security operation.