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Thefts at municipal albergue of Melide

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Jolanda, who stayed at the Municipal Albergue in Melide 29th, awoke this morning to discover that there had been some serious thefts. Jolanda will explain here-
In the early moring we discovered that many backpacks was opened and also taken out of the dorm to be opened. Some pilgrims report money (one guy alone lost 200 euros, a girl a smartphone, another a credit card And documents and the credencial, a pair of shoes, and even breakfast from the fridge!).
We also found a couple of unhauthorized persons inside the albergue, one of them said he was the son of the hospitalera, we don't know if they found open doors (as they told us), or if they had the keys.
The police came after 1h, I was there when they arrived. Later ( I was downstairs), it was reported to me that the police suggested people who had lost items and money should continue walking (!), and make a police report at the next town the next morning (?!). My backpack had been removed by the intruders and I found my things outside the dorm on the stairs and other people found their belongins and backpacks in the kitchen and on the ground floor, and on the stairs up to the second floor. We found it strange that none of the pilgrims were not disturbed during the theft, and that the police did not question the two guys that we found in the albergue (the son of the hospitalera and his girlfriend) or record the pilgrims complaint or loses.
Some pilgrims were able to identify two youths who they suspected could be involved, one with red hair who the police know about because they said they know someone with red hair is stealing from the albergues.
 
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I'm sorry to hear about this.

However, once again, those of us who have walked strongly suggest people DO NOT LEAVE MONEY OR CREDIT CARDS OR PASSPORTS in their backpacks. Those should be in a money belt on your person AT ALL TIMES. I just don't have any capital letters that are bigger than these.

And frankly, I wouldn't suggest taking anything you cannot afford to lose on the Camino, especially leaving it in your backpack.
 
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I am so sorry for your experience Jolanda.

Albergue municipal in Melide…When I stayed in Melide in the Jacobean Holy Year 2010, my bicycle along with 6 or 7 others was damaged by vandals. The tyres of all the bikes were punctured with a knife in a way that we all needed new ones. The case was reported to the police; in the meantime, the owner of the bicycle shop came to our albergue and organized everything for us as quickly and cheaply as possible. The hospitaliera was surprised while the owner of one of the local businesses was not, saying that it had happened before. Our setback wouldn’t have happened if there had been space for the bikes inside; sadly, in this albergue municipal bikes have to be left outside unlocked. Nothing has changed and bicycles still have to be kept outside. Sheds belonging to the albergue, ideal for bikes are locked and quite possibly used by rabbit’s relatives and friends.

I stayed in that albergue in June this year and as soon as hospitaliera went home I moved my bike inside the albergue and chained it to the railings of the stairs. Just in case.
 
This is sad reading - I'm very sorry this happened to everyone there. The fact that it has been happening since the middle ages doesn't make it OK - and some people have just made seriously bad karma.

Word to the wise (especially where the camino is crowded and you do not know the people in your albergue): do not be naive and assume everyone is a nice pilgrim. There are a few wolves out there in sheep's clothing. Not many, fortunately, but it only takes one.
Annie's advice is essential:
I'm sorry to hear about this.

However, once again, those of us who have walked strongly suggest people DO NOT LEAVE MONEY OR CREDIT CARDS OR PASSPORTS in their backpacks. Those should be in a money belt on your person AT ALL TIMES. I just don't have any capital letters that are bigger than these.

And frankly, I wouldn't suggest taking anything you cannot afford to lose on the Camino, especially leaving it in your backpack.
 
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The problem is not confined to Melide. A Santiago news website reported this morning on the arrest of a thief in an albergue who has been arrested and then released multiple times. One of several such reports this summer.
https://www.elcorreogallego.es/sant...rinos/idEdicion-2018-09-30/idNoticia-1139635/
Sorry but I am venting: so why release this person when they have been caught red-handed, multiple times? It makes zero sense.
I fail to understand the world sometimes.:(
 
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Probably because a life sentence isn't considered appropriate for petty theft. It is hard to figure out what is appropriate!
I took the article to mean that they had arrested the person and had released them on bail before the trial. My assumption must be wrong?
 
I took the article to mean that they had arrested the person and had released them on bail before the trial. My assumption must be wrong?

@VNwalking I think you are correct. The issue is that someone has been arrested, charges have been made, then they are released again until any trial takes place. There may often be a long period between arrest and trial in Spain.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Sorry to hear about the robbery....some measures to take are not to take out more than 200_300€...always keep that / credentials/ passport on the body & in sleeping bags while sleeping. I take that to the showers as well.( I need more hooks in the showers).. Shoes & sticks were taken in Pamplona 2017, Jesus Y Maria Alb. so all along the way I protected them by my names being clear on said items. I never cleaned my shoes. Well 3 Caminos in 3 consecutive years, no thefts of anything to report. Lucky.....buen camino
Miki From the Gold Coast
Aus
 
This is why I always tell people staying at albergues to place a ziplock bag containing their valuables and irreplaceable items in the sleeping bag with them, directly next to their body.

If it means sleeping with a fanny pack, so be it. Human nature is sometimes adverse.

Some folks I know have ultralightweight money belts and sleep with them on. Their passports, credit & debit cards, and money are in the money belt at night. A thief would have to be very cheeky indeed to try to enter one's sleeping bag, and remove the ziplock or money belt, etc.

Or, as put the more colloquial way...S*&T HAPPENS. Be prepared, think, plan ahead...

Hope this helps.
 
On Wednesday the 26 we stayed in the Melide municipal albergue, and along with everybody who had food in the fridge, had everything stolen - no breakfast that day!!
 
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I was four days out on the Via de la Plata, this year, when I met a very loud guy, abrasive, Brazilian. Though the night he emptied the fridge, took everything that he fancied, from the backpacks and apparently left at 5 am, before everyone else woke to find their gear ransacked. Police called, everyone then moved on, in pursuit of the Brazilian. As we met others further up the walk, they recounted the same event occurring, the only problem was that the fellow had moved down the track in a reverse direction. Thus evading pursuers.
 
I was four days out on the Via de la Plata, this year, when I met a very loud guy, abrasive, Brazilian. Though the night he emptied the fridge, took everything that he fancied, from the backpacks and apparently left at 5 am, before everyone else woke to find their gear ransacked. Police called, everyone then moved on, in pursuit of the Brazilian. As we met others further up the walk, they recounted the same event occurring, the only problem was that the fellow had moved down the track in a reverse direction. Thus evading pursuers.
People are coming from overseas to do this!? That's good be aware of: I always assumed people coming from afar were 'safe.' Hmmm. Maybe not.
And the only person I've met in an albergue who I thought was 'off' was walking backwards.
Some legitimate pilgrims do...but so do the wolves.

People emptying fridges just strikes me as sad. Someone without enough food or the means to get it.
It's easy to judge thieves, but life is seriously hard for some people, and there is less and less of a safety net.
 
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People emptying fridges just strikes me as sad. Someone without enough food or the means to get it.
It's easy to judge thieves, but life is seriously hard for some people, and there is less and less of a
I've worked in places where there has been a fridge thief, probably didn't like the the food they had brought in for lunch so took somebody else's. This happened on a regular basis the culprit was never discovered.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Rotten and disappointing thing to happen on the home stretch! If I remember rightly the municipal Albergue is very close to the end of the street that leads onto the trail and has been extensively renovated! The dorms are on the 1st and second floors (?) and have hugh sliding barn type double doors which are chained when not in use!! Back in May the hall and stair lights stayed on so when people use the toilets in the night the doors are always being drawn open and closed! As a light sleeper that particular night I didn’t notice anyone carrying bags out to the corridors prior to 6am. I wonder if my curiosity and suspicion would have been aroused to follow these villains ?
 
Jolanda, who stayed at the Municipal Albergue in Melide 29th, awoke this morning to discover that there had been some serious thefts. Jolanda will explain here-
In the early moring we discovered that many backpacks was opened and also taken out of the dorm to be opened. Some pilgrims report money (one guy alone lost 200 euros, a girl a smartphone, another a credit card And documents and the credencial, a pair of shoes, and even breakfast from the fridge!).
We also found a couple of unhauthorized persons inside the albergue, one of them said he was the son of the hospitalera, we don't know if they found open doors (as they told us), or if they had the keys.
The police came after 1h, I was there when they arrived. Later ( I was downstairs), it was reported to me that the police suggested people who had lost items and money should continue walking (!), and make a police report at the next town the next morning (?!). My backpack had been removed by the intruders and I found my things outside the dorm on the stairs and other people found their belongins and backpacks in the kitchen and on the ground floor, and on the stairs up to the second floor. We found it strange that none of the pilgrims were not disturbed during the theft, and that the police did not question the two guys that we found in the albergue (the son of the hospitalera and his girlfriend) or record the pilgrims complaint or loses.
Some pilgrims were able to identify two youths who they suspected could be involved, one with red hair who the police know about because they said they know someone with red hair is stealing from the albergues.
Trust in God but tether your camel ... always good advice.
 
HAH! I totally read that as "I sleep with a small crossbow in my sleep sack"

I had a new Camino hero for a minute!!
Hahahaha, funny thing I also read "crossbow".
 
Join the Camino cleanup. Logroño to Burgos May 2025 & Astorga to OCebreiro in June
Sorry about the boundary cross. It feels horrible no matter what you lose.

I took apart a full fridge twice one morning looking for my breakfast. I had a hard time believing someone would be that big of a pisser.
 
Join the Camino cleanup. Logroño to Burgos May 2025 & Astorga to OCebreiro in June
Keep your most important belongings on/with you at all times, also in the shower, and put them in the bottom of your sleeping bag at night. Also, do not drop your backpack outside the cafes while going inside for buying coffe/beer. Trust your neighbors, but don't tempt them.;)
 

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