El Prat, the Place Governed by the Comuns That Has Become a Lawless City

This week, the San Cosme neighborhood has once again been the scene of a shooting involving a Local Police patrol. The officers were providing escort service for the postal service when suddenly four shots were heard. During their retreat, they discovered a stolen shotgun on the ground, which had been used to fire the shots.

Although the incident ended without injuries, the municipal police force warned that "we can't guarantee the mail carrier's safety or our own."

This is the situation in El Prat de Llobregat, a city governed by the Comuns where crime has skyrocketed by 51%. The epicenter of the violence is San Cosme, considered one of the ten most dangerous neighborhoods in all of Spain. It goes further, and conventional crime has surged throughout the urban core, joined by issues of coexistence and incivility.

The degradation of El Prat, like many other Catalan localities, highlights the failure of the left's public safety policies. The Comuns have always denied the crime problem and attributed it to far-right hoaxes.

Crime Rises in El Prat de Llobregat

According to the latest update from the Ministry of the Interior, conventional crime has surged by 51.1% in El Prat de Llobregat. Notably, there is a 100% increase in homicides, a 150% increase in attempted homicides, and a 66.7% increase in sexual assaults.

Robberies with violence and intimidation have also surged (19.9%), as have thefts (67%). However, another particularly striking figure is that vehicle thefts have skyrocketed by 95% in the fourth quarter of 2024.

There is a decrease in crimes of tumultuous brawls, burglaries in homes and establishments, and drug trafficking. The crimes that have increased the most are precisely those that involve more violence and heighten residents' perception of insecurity.

Not Enough Officers

Behind the increase in insecurity is an evident lack of police resources. There are fewer than one hundred Local Police officers for a population of 70,000 residents. To ensure citizens' safety, the officers have to work almost ten thousand extra hours a year.

The Comuns promised in 2013 an increase in officers that has never materialized. Within the force, they claim that the officers who arrive end up leaving due to the harsh conditions in which they have to work.

This has created a space of impunity that has driven up crime. According to the Comuns, the data doesn't reflect reality because it is distorted by crimes committed at El Prat airport. However, police unions assert that with more officers, the 14,873 crimes recorded in 2024, 3,400 more than the previous year, could be reduced.