The National Police have arrested one of the most dangerous and wanted men in Tenerife, a 39-year-old from the San Andrés area of Santa Cruz, who has 33 cases against for various crimes, including 12 this year for knife crime, armed robbery, and GBH in various parts of Tenerife and some in Gran Canaria.
The man, whose identity has not been publicly released yet, has served several years in prison before but started committing crimes again as soon as he was released, making him one of the most wanted people in Tenerife by the police.
He was caught last week after stealing a rent-a-car, several electronic devices, various documents, and credit cards from different people in the south of Tenerife, together with a male accomplice.
When they were heading towards Santa Cruz on the TF-1 motorway, they had a problem with the car which forced them to contact the rental company, refusing to give personal data and demanding a replacement for the vehicle.
Due to this, an employee of the rent-a-car company met them where they had stopped, and after being hassled and ‘bullied’ by the two men, agreed to take them to one of the company’s offices for a replacement, however, he became suspicious of them when they unloaded their ‘belongings’ into his vehicle, which included the aforementioned electronic devices and two electric scooters, thinking that the items could be stolen.
During the journey, the arrested man’s accomplice threatened to punch the rent-a-car employee, forcing him to drop him off in Santa Clara, a suburb of Santa Cruz, where he got out taking the items with him.
The employee then continued to the rental company's premises with the 39-year-old man, who continued to threaten him, demanding another vehicle, and refusing to show identification. Seeing what was happening, another employee managed to discreetly call the National Police, who came straight to the office and recognising the man, arrested him on sight.
In addition, proceedings have started to locate the man’s accomplice, who has been described and recognized in photographs by the rent-a-car employee, and whose phone number was logged when he called to request a replacement car.
This man was located by the police two days ago at his home but refused to be identified or detained and tried to get hold of one of the arresting officers’ weapons during a struggle, before being reduced and handcuffed.
During his transfer to the police station, the man threatened the police officers and caused damage to the patrol car, aggravating the charges against him. Both men are now in prison awaiting trial.
