Following a major railway disruption attributed to common criminal activity, the Spanish Ministry of the Interior has prioritized the investigation of copper theft rings, leading to a significant mobilization of police resources across high-speed rail regions.

The order was issued after Minister Óscar Puente characterized the situation as sabotage, despite initial findings by the Civil Guard indicating it was a result of routine criminal behavior.

On May 5, a theft of copper, which significantly impacted train services between Madrid and Andalusia, prompted a swift governmental response.

This incident saw the Interior Ministry redirect Judicial Police forces from ongoing investigations to focus on the copper theft problem, a chronic issue that authorities have struggled to address effectively for years.

As a result of this redirection of resources, units expressed discontent with being compelled to suspend other investigations.

The urgency underlined by the government stemmed from a desire to prevent a repeat of the chaos experienced during the railway service disruption.

Law enforcement efforts were bolstered by the ROCA Team, which specializes in agricultural theft.

The operation has culminated in the arrest of 21 individuals, with authorities seizing 20 tons of stolen copper across eight autonomous communities.

The estimated value of the stolen goods amounts to €2.5 million.

The Civil Guard reported that the criminal network is responsible for 102 theft incidents, with the most significant comprising the cable theft that halted train operations and affected over 10,000 passengers.

The network conducted its thefts daily from the Madrid region, but operations extended to Andalusia, Aragon, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y León, the Valencian Community, Extremadura, and Murcia.

Investigators in Valencia, Castilla-La Mancha, and Madrid have been engaged in these inquiries since June 2024, following the initiation of a case focused on a series of copper thefts.

The investigation gained momentum after the recent railway incident, resulting in the dismantling of lower-level operatives within the criminal hierarchy over a matter of months.

Security footage from gas stations near theft locations provided crucial evidence in identifying suspects involved in the Toledo railway disruption.

Despite the successful conclusion of this investigation, some officers involved have expressed dissatisfaction with the overall strategy dictated from Madrid.

Tensions have arisen between the Civil Guard and the government, particularly related to the response to the railway incident.

While Minister Puente attributed the chaos to the possibility of a deliberate sabotage, the Civil Guard maintained that evidence pointed toward ordinary criminal activity.

This divergence in narrative underscored the complexities within operational and governmental alignments.

Investigators determined that the criminal organization behind these thefts operated with a structured hierarchy: one group executed the thefts, another collected intelligence on targets, while a third managed the sale of the stolen materials.

Furthermore, the organization employed strategic patterns, executing several robberies in clusters over short periods, and was known to include members from Romania who assisted with logistics for selling and recycling the stolen copper.