About 100 police officers from the Mossos d'Esquadra, Local Police, and National Police identified more than 60 people on Tuesday morning at the 'market of misery', located under the bridge of the C-31 highway between Badalona and Sant Adrià de Besòs (Barcelona).
The market takes place every Tuesday morning, and street vendors offer clothing, appliances, bed frames, and low-quality materials, among other things. In Tuesday's operation, which Europa Press attended, police officers arrived at the market around 7:45 am, when there were few vendors, who abandoned the area upon seeing the police presence.
However, by 11:17 am, more than 60 people had been identified, and the National Police's Foreigner Unit had transferred 6 people due to their irregular status in Spain, according to provisional data. Additionally, around 5,000 kilograms of material were seized, which was taken away by the cleaning service of Badalona.
MOSSOS STATEMENTS
Meanwhile, the head of the Basic Police Area (ABP) of Badalona, Alfons Sàrrias, explained to the media that the objective is to "recover the public space occupied by illegal street vendors for the use of citizens".
"When the operation began, some people who intended to set up their stalls and engage in this illegal activity moved to other parts of the city," he said. Sàrrias detailed that it is a "historic market", known as the 'market of misery', and assured that his intention is to carry out police operations every Tuesday, adapting the intensity depending on the response.
"We understand that each time this operation is carried out, the number of people engaging in this activity will be smaller, so the operation will have to be modified according to need," he explained.
Additionally, he highlighted that it is not a static operation, as the first point of the market is under the C-31 bridge, but agents patrol the cities to find other points where vendors may gather.
COMPLAINTS OF FILTH
"One of the complaints from citizens about this market is that since the material sold here is of poor quality, it is often abandoned like trash in any part of the city, generating filth," Sàrrias stated. He denied that the "majority" of the material sold in the 'market of misery' is stolen or counterfeit.