You could expect somebody to steal your phone, even your car… but your home, and we’re not talking about squatters but rather somebody making off with it!

OK, we’re referring to mobile or prefab homes/cabins and not standard brick houses, but even so! The theft took place in Las Gabias and has resulted in three arrests. We’re also not talking about fully finished ones but rather flat-packed ones in shipping containers, ready for assembly, worth over 40,000 euros.

The containers were on a person’s land, which admittedly was not fenced in, within the area of Las Gabias knowns as Cerro de los Galgos (Greyhound Hill). But who would have imagined that somebody would tip-toe away with a 2,500-kilo shipping container. Fortunately, however, he had installed security cameras on the property.

On the 27th of March upon visiting his land, he found that somebody had half-inched (pinched) his two prefabs. He checked the footage from the security cameras and saw that a large lorry with a Palfinger (loading crane) had visited, making off with one of them. He lost no time in getting around to the nearest Guardia Civil post to show them the footage.

Although the numberplate of the lorry was not visible at any moment, what was visible was the logo of a well known, builder suppliers, so they paid them a visit. Although the lorry belonged to them, it was often used by a self-employed worker (autónomo).

Next, they paid the driver a visit who recognised that he had been hired to transport two containers; one to a property in Churriana de la Vega and the other to a property over in the Province of Málaga. So, the police went to the Churriana farm and found one prefab already erected and connected up to electricity and water.

When they questioned to property owners, they said that they had “found the prefab lying about in Las Gabias,” and had consulted their lawyer who had supposedly told them, “as they have no owners, to take them.” Not only that, but the said lawyer also had the second one taken to his own property in the Province of Málaga.

Not impressed, the Guardia Civil arrested these two individuals. Soon their lawyer turned up, who recognised that he had taken the second prefab. All three claimed that the houses didn’t have owners so they took them.

The Guardia Civil made them disassemble the prefabs and put them back where they had found them and were then released pending trial.

Editorial comment: how could you walk onto somebody’s land (which obviously belongs to somebody) and take away property and claim that it didn’t have an owner! Obviously, their lawyer should find a different employment.

(News/Noticias: Las Gabias, Vega, Granada, Andalucia)