Barajas Airport, early morning. Three women pass through the security filters of Adolfo Suárez-Madrid Barajas with their respective boarding passes in hand. They are not carrying suitcases. Nor do they intend to fly. Their only destination: the duty-free shops. There, as they had done on previous days, they proceed to carry out their routine. In a matter of minutes, they approach the displays of top brand perfumes and begin to fill their bags with bottles of different top brand perfumes valued at hundreds of euros. Afterwards, they leave the terminal as if nothing happened. No flight to catch. Just an exit door that leads them back to the street.
The scene was repeated several times during the month of May. According to the Guardia Civil, the arrested women were part of a criminal group specialized in thefts within the restricted area of the airport, to which they gained access with valid boarding passes. Once inside, they headed to the duty-free stores and stole luxury perfumes, only to leave Barajas without boarding a flight.
The owners of the affected stores began to notice patterns and reported the incidents to the authorities. Following the filed complaints, the agents of the Armed Institute launched an investigation that concluded in early June, when they caught the three women trying to leave the terminal with 19 perfumes hidden in their belongings. The total value of that failed operation was close to 3,000 euros.
In the series of thefts attributed to the group in recent weeks, the accumulated loot exceeds 12,700 euros. The three detainees are charged with crimes of belonging to a criminal group and continuous theft. The judicial authority has decreed as a precautionary measure the explicit prohibition of accessing the airport's commercial area.