The Algarve Situation Report Wednesday 16th October 2024
by Mike Evans
A very good afternoon to you all as I write this report while the rain comes pouring down. The fire season has officially finished and the rains have arrived on schedule. For many of us this has been a long summer trying to keep our water consumption down, a mission which we seem to have succeeded in as the taps are still running! Let’s hope that these next few weeks of rain forecasted will help swell the reservoirs that serve us here in the Algarve.
The month of October is designated by the WHO as Suicide Prevention Month and there are very few families where this particular tragedy has not had an impact in one way or another. It is good to see that Sao Bras de Alportel has joined the “Grab Life” campaign, in force during Suicide Prevention Month , with the aim of raising awareness among the population about this issue and calling for an active role, both at an individual level and at the level of the different community structures in the prevention of suicide and mental illness.
The “Grab Life” campaign is promoted worldwide by the World Health Organization and the International Association for Suicide Prevention and has the support, at national level, of the National Coordination of Mental Health Policies, the Portuguese Society of Suicidology and, in the Algarve, of the Regional Coordination of Mental Health, the Algarve Local Health Unit and its Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, the Algarve Health Center Groups, and various local authorities and institutions.
This awareness-raising campaign will continue throughout the month of October, when World Mental Health Day is celebrated. A discussion entitled “Here Among Us” will take place on October 18th, at 9:30 pm, at the Municipal Gallery of São Brás de Alportel, with the theme “No, everything is not okay!”.
This meeting proposes a reflection on today’s silent epidemics, such as anxiety, depression, burnout and suicide, which affect people of all ages and sectors of society. The initiative promoted by the municipality features first-hand testimonies from those who have experienced difficult times. It also has the collaboration of the Gonçalo Assunção “Prometo Viver” Association, which held its third gala on October 9th at Teatro das Figuras, where it was possible to raise funds to open a new SOS Voz Amiga helpline, which will support people from all over the country from the Algarve, and to create, in partnership with the Algarve Mental Health Association (ASMAL), several community service centres with regular and free consultations with psychology professionals.
This project will facilitate the early detection of mental illnesses and will allow for more effective preventive interventions. This initiative has the support of the municipalities of Faro and São Brás de Alportel. A great initiative which we should all support if possible.
Now a brief look at some of the other news from the region over the past couple of weeks.
Two Algarve Beaches affected by Crude Oil spillage
Two Algarve beaches (adjacent to each other in the municipality of Vila do Bispo) have been affected by a crude oil spill, blighting water quality.Authorities have already ‘banned’ bathing until conditions “are reversed”.The crude was first detected yesterday at Cabanas Velhas, with AMN national maritime authority admitting its origins at this point are unknown. For now, the situation is in the hands of the Southern Maritime Department and the Directorate for Combating Pollution at Sea, which has activated what is called the 3rd level of readiness of the Clean Sea Plan.
Polluting material was being rounded up this morning at which point authorities patrolling the coast realised it was also present at Boca do Rio. “All contaminated material collected” has been sent to “an appropriate treatment unit via Vila do Bispo town hall”, said a statement this morning from the national maritime authority, explaining that the “general aim of the Mar Limpo Plan is to establish a response mechanism for hydrocarbon and other dangerous substance spills, and for situations where there is an imminent threat of such spills, to define responsibilities of the organisations involved and to establish their competences”.
With no culprit yet identified, it is unclear how, or even if, authorities will be investigating further.
Woman found dead in Castro Marin Brothel
The PJ police consider there are no signs of crime in the death of a 53-year-old Brazilian woman in a brothel in Vale de Andreu, Castro Marim, on Saturday. The body was found following a fire in one of the bedrooms. According to tabloid Correio da Manhã, “firefighters found the door to the room shut and when they entered they discovered the victim on the floor”. The body has been sent for autopsy to try and discover the cause of death.
Three Arrested for Theft in Portimao
The Criminal Investigation Unit (NIC) of the GNR of Portimão have arrested three men who are suspected of stealing non-precious metals, construction materials and scooters, in Alvor.
Following a complaint about crimes of theft, the police carried out “several investigations that allowed the identification of the three men, perpetrators of the thefts, as well as recovering dozens of stolen pieces of non-precious metals, namely copper and tin plumbing material, and also four electric scooters”.
The detainees, aged between 26 and 29, were brought before the Portimão Judicial Court, where they were subject to coercive measures.
Man Arrested for Robbery in Quarteira
The Criminal Investigation Unit (NIC) of the Loulé GNR have arrested a 35 year old man, for committing several crimes of theft and robbery, in the parish of Quarteira.
Following the various crimes of theft and robbery in the area, police carried out several investigations that “allowed the suspect to be located in the municipality of Ferreira do Alentejo, in the district of Beja”.
“An arrest warrant was served for the crimes of robbery, vehicle theft, theft from inside a vehicle, theft from a garage and card abuse, which culminated in the arrest of the suspect.”
Body Found On Spanish Coast thought to be Missing Portuguese Lady
The body of what is thought to be 44 year old Carla Leal, who disappeared last week in Vila Real de Santo António after her car was found in the Guadiana river, has been found on the Spanish coast, in Huelva.
A family source confirmed to journalists that the body had been found, although official procedures between the authorities of the two countries are still pending, to confirm the identity of the victim.
The alert for the disappearance was given by the family, after the woman left her workplace, a restaurant on Santo António beach, in Vila Real de Santo António, on the night of September 30 and did not return home. On October 2, the woman’s car was found in the Guadiana River and removed by authorities, for analysis by teams from the GNR Accident Investigation Unit.
Authorities carried out searches in the Guadiana, in Portugal and Spain, and along the bordering coasts in both countries, for several days to try to locate the woman, but without results.
The captain of the port of Vila Real de Santo António, João Afonso Martins, who coordinated the searches in the river and on the coast, said he had not received official communication to confirm whether the body found was or was not that of the missing woman.
Prison Break Drug Lord Arrested in Morocco
Algarve drug lord Fábio Loureiro, one of the prisoners who escaped from the Vale de Judeus Prison on Sept 7th, was arrested on Sunday night in Tangier, Morocco. At around 10:00 pm local time, the Moroccan authorities, with the collaboration of the Spanish authorities, in close coordination with the Judicial Police (PJ)” arrested the suspect, who had been on the run since September 7th.
“The international police operation was launched in less than 24 hours, with the strong support of the Spanish Cuerpo Nacional de Policía (CNP) and the Moroccan General Directorate of National Territorial Surveillance (DGST), based on credible information from the PJ, that Fábio Loureiro was in Morocco.
Fábio Loureiro had an international arrest warrant out on him and was on Interpol’s most wanted list, the PJ said in a statement. He has been convicted of the crimes of kidnapping, drug trafficking, criminal association, armed robbery and evasion and will now be “presented to the Moroccan judicial authorities with a view to his extradition to Portugal for the purposes of serving his sentence”, adds the PJ.
According to the audit report on the performance of the surveillance and security services, which was prepared by the Security Services Division of the Directorate-General for Reintegration and Prison Services, the escape of the inmates “took six minutes” and was only detected about an hour later.
The group of escapees included two Portuguese citizens, Fernando Ribeiro Ferreira and Fábio Fernandes Santos Loureiro, a citizen of Georgia, Shergili Farjiani, one from Argentina, Rodolf José Lohrmann, and one from the United Kingdom, Mark Cameron Roscaleer, aged between 33 and 61.
They were sentenced to between seven and 25 years in prison for various crimes, including drug trafficking, criminal association, robbery, kidnapping and money laundering. Of these, only Fábio Loureiro has so far been caught by the authorities.
The escape of these criminals on Sept 7th led to the removal of the prison director and the resignation of the then general director of Reintegration and Prison Services, Rui Abrunhosa e Gonçalves, who was replaced on an interim basis by Isabel Leitão, who was already part of that general directorate supervised by the Ministry of Justice.
The escape from Vale de Judeus led the Minister of Justice, Rita Alarcão Júdice, who ordered an audit of the security of Portuguese prisons, to be heard recently on the case in the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Affairs, Rights, Freedoms and Guarantees, at the request of the Liberal Initiative.
GNR Operation Nets 61 Arrests
The GNR Territorial Command of Faro carried out a series of operations in the district of Faro, in the week of October 7th to 13th, which aimed to prevent and combat violent crime. During the week 61 people were detained, including 20 for driving without a licence; 15 for driving under the influence of alcohol and 3 for drug trafficking.
A total of 127 doses of hashish; Two shotguns; 3 pressure guns; 4 electric bicycles; 3 cell phones; Two digital scales; A machete; Ammunition and Non-precious metal materials, were also seized. During the same period, a total of 102 accidents were recorded, with 24 minor injuries.
Until the next time Stay Safe