The Civil Guard has arrested a 39-year-old woman accused of five theft and fraud offences against elderly people in Colmenar Viejo. The detainee gained the trust of her victims in senior centres and accompanied them home to steal from them.
The Civil Guard has arrested a woman in Colmenar Viejo as the alleged perpetrator of five offences committed against elderly people, three of theft and two of bank fraud. The investigation, which began last spring, reveals a pattern of behaviour that has raised alarm among the local residents, especially those with elderly family members.
The facts came to light when an elderly man reported that a woman had gained his trust only to steal personal items and his credit card. With that card, the suspect made transactions at ATMs and shops in the locality, according to the report from the Civil Guard.
A modus operandi that exploits vulnerability
The method used by the detainee is, according to the Civil Guard, as simple as it is effective, making it particularly dangerous. The woman approached elderly people near senior centres, engaged them in conversation, and offered to accompany them to their homes. Once inside, she took advantage of the trust she had built to steal personal items and bank cards, from which she obtained the PIN number to operate without raising suspicion.
The victims, all elderly and some with cognitive disorders, became easy targets for this alleged criminal, who acted with total naturalness. Officers have confirmed that the detainee always chose solitary and vulnerable individuals, which aggravates the nature of the offences.
The citizen alert that precipitated the arrest
The investigation, which began with the report of an elderly man in spring, allowed agents to gather the physical characteristics of the perpetrator and locate other victims who had suffered similar incidents. However, it was at the end of June when the turning point occurred: the Civil Guard received an alert that a woman was offering to accompany several elderly people at a senior centre in Colmenar Viejo.
This alert enabled investigators to act swiftly and arrest the suspect before she could commit further thefts. The quick response prevented the number of victims from continuing to grow, according to sources from the investigation.
Criminal record in four provinces
One of the most striking facts of the case is that the detainee was not a novice in these crimes. According to the Civil Guard, the woman has a record for similar offences in municipalities in Madrid, Burgos, Zaragoza, and Asturias, indicating a repeated pattern of behaviour over time and across different autonomous communities.
After her arrest, the suspect was placed at the disposal of the Colmenar Viejo court, where she will have to answer for the five offences she is charged with. The judicial authority will determine the appropriate precautionary measures while the case is being investigated.
Advice to protect the elderly
Cases like this remind us of the importance of being extremely cautious with elderly family members, especially if they live alone or show any cognitive decline. The Civil Guard recommends being wary of strangers who appear overly helpful, never sharing the PIN of bank cards under any circumstances, and calling 062 for any suspicious behaviour near senior centres.
In Colmenar Viejo, the arrest has been met with relief by local residents' associations, which had already alerted to the presence of a woman with this profile in the area. Citizen collaboration, the officers emphasize, has been key to putting an end to this wave of thefts.
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