Eighty-five recurrent offenders arrested for thefts on Barcelona buses
A joint operation over a four-month period between the Mossos d’Esquadra, Barcelona City Police and TMB led to the arrest of 85 recurrent offenders specialising in thefts on the bus network, between them accounting for 628 incidents reported to the police. Initial calculations put he volume of fraudulent actions resulting from these offences at over 40,000 euros. The operation also dismantled five organised crime groups.
Dos agents de la Guàrdia Urbana en el torn de nit
The operation centred on crowded buses, where the delinquents selected vulnerable victims such as women, the elderly or those with reduced mobility, passengers with pushchairs and tourists. The most usual methods included the “crutch” technique, a coordinated action to generate build-ups of people and physical proximity under false pretexts of assistance.
The items stolen were mainly mobile phones, wallets and bank cards, which were then used to make fraudulent purchases or access personal data.
The groups investigated were highly itinerant and thanks to European police coordination information was obtained on arrests in other countries after their activity in Catalonia.
The operation was developed through the Joint Investigation Team, made up of the DIC, the Regional Area for Urban Transport with the Mossos d’Esquadra, the Barcelona City Police and the collaboration of TMB. It was based on an analysis of police reports, TMB video surveillance images, police monitoring, recognition by victims and the study of associated operating methods.
The operation came as part of the Kanpai Plan, rolled out around Catalonia and adapted to the Barcelona bus network. The investigations started in at the end of November helped cut thefts by 40.7% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to last year, dropping from 605 offences to 359 a month on average.
Un bus arribant a una parada
Dos autobusos elèctrics aparcats
