Costa News Spain Breaking News | English News in Spain.
EXPATS are warned to be on the alert after a resident in Calahonda fell victim to an elaborate ‘flat tyre’ scam.
What seemed to be an obliging roadside gesture to Inken T, a German ex-pat in Andalucia turned out to have been a well-staged theft. She was left without her handbag and cash as well as important documents.
Inken warns neighbours who may fall victim to a con orchestrated in a cruel manner, shortly after withdrawing money from a local branch.
The German expat, who has been living in Spain for over ten years, says she’s focused on ‘putting the pieces back together’ after yesterday’s episode.
She told The Olive Press, “I refuse see the negative in people. I tend to find the positive.”
READ MORE In the woods of Marbella, a tonne-worth of cocaine was discovered in a bunker after a drug shootout.
On Tuesday, the theft occurred on a small road that connects the area around Miel y Nata to Avenida de Europa.
According to the victim, she just withdrawn money from a Banco Sabadell before driving uphill to Avenida de Europa.
On the way, another driver told her she had a flat tire.
Inken stopped and contacted her insurer for roadside help.
As she waited, a man approached and offered to help. She was reportedly shown a tyre-repair spray.
Her account indicated that the man was in mid-30s, wearing a baseball hat and sunglasses. He spoke Spanish with a Latin American dialect.
READ MORE Costa del Sol Taxi driver punches drunk Irish passengers who he threw from the cab for hurping
The man claimed that it wasn’t working properly, but offered to help fix the tyre and inflate it.
He told her that he would bring her another spray, and encouraged her to keep trying the one she had.
Inken stepped outside her car and focused on the damaged tyre.
She thought she was being helped by a good Samaritan at this point.
READ MORE After Trump’s furious threats to cut off trade due to Iran tensions, EU leaders rally around Spain
She found her handbag missing from her car moments later.
She claimed that dealing with the damaged tyre was already intrusive.
Then, to realise that her bag was missing important documents and a significant amount of money – an amount that surpasses Spain’s legal threshold to be classified as serious theft – Inken admitted it was a ‘psychologically bad’ experience.
The technician who arrived at the roadside showed her the metal object that had intentionally punctured the tyre.
Inken described the item as being around 6cm in length and having a sharp edge like a blade. She believes it was part of a coordinated crime and that the puncture had been done intentionally.
Inken, when asked if she thought it was a single person that committed the crime said that the elaborate methods used in the scam would not have been possible for one person to do.
She believes that the perpetrators changed her tyres near the bank, followed her car and waited for her to stop.
Inken has lost a large amount of money and now must replace important documents as well as pay for the repair of her car.
The victim shared photos of the metal object that punctured her tire via Facebook.
Inken said that she had taken all the necessary measures after the crime. She went straight to the police and filed a complaint, then contacted security at the bank to turn off her card.
She was fortunate to have her car keys and phone on her at the time.
It’s not her first experience with crime in the southern region of Spain. Inken told The Olive Press she had her wallet taken from her purse in Fuengirola several years ago.
During the wedding weekend of last year, she was robbed by three guests in the exact same place.
Inken remains optimistic despite the negative comments that she received on her Facebook posting. She is also grateful for how many positive responses and feedbacks she has received.
According to several comments on her post, other locals have insisted this type of ‘damaged tyre scam’ has been going on for years.
When asked what advice she would give other tourists and expats after this experience, Inken said to ‘be vigilant, be vigilant, be vigilant.’
“Have a bag under your arm and always be aware,” she said.
Costa del Sol does not have a low crime rate. Spain’s Ministry of the Interior released its 2024 crime reports which revealed that the region of Andalucia was responsible for 409,698 criminal acts.
Spain reported 633 888 theft crimes by 2025.
Online, UK tourists have been warned about street crime and vehicle theft. The official foreign travel advice from the UK government explained that ‘thieves use distraction techniques and often work in teams.’
So-called ‘highway pirates’ have been found to use tactics like flagging you down and ‘claiming there is something wrong with your car or that you have damaged theirs.’
Tourists are alerted to ‘be wary of anyone offering help.’
Tourists and residents in the area are advised to exercise caution if approached uninvited by a stranger offering roadside help, especially after visiting banks or dealing with cash.
Anyone with any information about the area is encouraged to contact local officials.
Click here to read the latest Spain News at The Olive Press.
