Olivia Idle
WHAT began as a quiet summer for one gated community on the Costa Blanca has turned into a nightmare its residents – both expat and Spanish alike – cannot wake up from.
The tranquility of the Lo Crispin urbanisation in Algorfa, Alicante, was shattered when a band of squatters smashed their way into a vacant villa in late June – and immediately began terrorising neighbours who dared to intervene.
Things quickly came to a head when indignant homeowners gathered to rebuild an external wall that the intruders had smashed down.
Videos seen by the Olive Press captured the tense standoff.
READ MORE: Squatters get rent collector and ‘large men’ arrested for staging violent eviction in Spain
Residents, led by community president Daniel Elizalde, are seen rebuilding the outer wall the intruders were using to gain entry.
A pregnant woman cradling a child comes out to the street to hurl abuse, while her confederates on the other side of the wall try to rip down the breeze blocks as fast as the residents could put them up.
The confrontation quickly turns ugly.
In the chaos, Elizalde’s wife was shoved against a wall and received a nasty gash across her hand – an injury that required stitches and days off work.
“You’re hurting us!” residents cry out on camera along with “call the police!”, only for the squatters to shout back that they have a ‘pregnant women and children’ in their midst.
One squatter, described by witnesses as ‘pure evil’, made a throat-slitting gesture to Elizalde and teven hreatened to kill the pets of those trying to rebuild the wall.
READ MORE: Elderly couple’s nightmare ends after British squatter leaves Mallorca apartment- owing over €20k
According to real estate agent Gillian Kingham, he later vowed to ‘run Daniel over’ if he saw him in the street.
Remarkably, the entire confrontation took place in front of nearby Guardia Civil officers whose only action was to ask to see the squatter’s ID.
“The Guardia Civil won’t do anything until someone gets really hurt – or worse,” Kingham said.
“I was there the day the wall was knocked down and I was absolutely gobsmacked by the situation and lack of reaction from authorities,” she added.
“The mayor is all wishy-washy like a wet lettuce. When we went to him, he didn’t want to know.
“The one making the threats, he’s not living in the house,” Kingham continued.
“He is the part of the gang that finds the houses to occupy – he leaves them open for the others to move in.
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“They all have their roles – he is the awful one that threatens people who try to fight back, while the pregnant ones are there to make sure they can’t be legally removed.”
Neighbours claim that the squatters have showed them a rental contract purporting to state that they have paid €1,000 to stay in the property – ‘but the Guardia Civil assured us that this contract is fake.’
It is believed that the money is paid to an organised gang that operates in the area, finding empty homes for groups and families to enter using ‘fake contracts and charging illegal rents.’
READ MORE: Anti-squatter plan launched in Valencia after record number of complaints in 2024
“They themselves admitted to us that they own 16 similar properties in the area,” one neighbour said on local radio.
Residents have told the Olive Press that two heavily-pregnant women and a number of men are now squatting in the three-bedroom villa – complete with its own swimming pool.
Since the confrontation, the intruders have managed to knock down the external wall entirely, leaving an opening for them to come and go. The property’s front gate has been padlocked from the outside.
One resident, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Olive Press the community feels desperate and abandoned by the authorities.
“People feel helpless. They just don’t feel they’re getting any support from the authorities.
“Residents are scared witless. We have many older residents in urbanisation, and they are very concerned and worried.”
Lo Crispin homeowner Kenneth Yates described how police even ordered residents to stop rebuilding the wall. The squatters tore it down again as soon as officers left.
READ MORE: Expert warns ‘it’s a disgrace that squatting is great business’ as scourge rises 7% in Spain
“The main grievance with the residents is that the squatters seem to have more rights than we do,” he said.
“We have been on Lo Crispin 15 years and have never known a situation like it. It’s a disgrace that the powers that be seem to be dragging their feet and doing nothing.”
Elizalde told the Olive Press he reported the squatters to the police immediately, citing a Spanish law that allows police to remove squatters without a court order if reported within the first 48 hours.
But despite this legal window being met, nothing was done.
And in spite of making repeated reports to the police, residents claim they’ve been ignored by authorities, including Algorfa’s mayor, Manuel Ivan Ros Rodes.
The Olive Press has contacted the mayor’s office for comment.
Elizalde was keen to play down the significance of the Lo Crispin situation, labelling it just one example of a nationwide crisis driven by soaring house prices, limited rental options and inadequate social housing that have all led to a rise in illegal occupations across the country.
Figures from the Ministry of the Interior show a total of 15,289 complaints of illegal squatting were recorded in Spain in 2023.
READ MORE: Plumber turned squatter steals taps and pipes from Costa Blanca holiday homes
“We need to be more conscious about what is going on,” he added.
“We need to stand up and say we need more housing available for social services and we need to make sure not just anyone can break into homes.”
Although Congress recently passed a new law that allows for express evictions in under 15 days, residents in Lo Crispin say it doesn’t help them as the property on the urbanisation is owned by a bank, and the new measure only applies to private homeowners.
Despite the fear and frustration, the community is refusing to give up. A neighbourhood meeting is being organised to raise awareness and demand action.
“We’re determined to fight back,” said Elizalde. “But we can’t do it alone.”
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