PSP recovers more than 100 stolen phones linked to Afro Nation

PSP police have recovered more than 100 mobile phones and numerous identification documents believed to have been stolen during the Afro Nation festival in Portimão after a victim tracked her missing device to a restaurant in Lisbon.

The haul was discovered inside four abandoned suitcases at a restaurant in the Arroios district of the capital following a report from a woman whose phone had allegedly been stolen during the festival at Praia da Rocha.

According to the Lisbon Metropolitan Command of the PSP, the operation took place on the evening of July 6 after the woman contacted police to report that her phone’s location services were indicating it was inside the restaurant. Before alerting officers, she had gone to the premises herself and noticed a man wearing an Afro Nation festival wristband.

By the time police arrived, the suspect had already left. However, a witness told officers that the man had abandoned four suitcases at the restaurant shortly before departing.

Given the suspicious circumstances and the fact that the luggage was open, officers searched the suitcases and found more than 100 mobile phones along with numerous identity documents belonging to different people.

The devices and documents were seized as a precaution while police began identifying their rightful owners. The PSP have already confirmed that several of the phones had been stolen, and some have since been returned to their owners.

No arrests have been made and the investigation remains ongoing.

Portuguese media reports suggest investigators suspect the thefts were carried out by an organised criminal group that travelled to Portugal to target the festival, although the PSP has not publicly confirmed the nationality of any suspects.

The force is continuing to identify the owners of the remaining recovered phones and documents. Festival-goers who reported phones stolen during Afro Nation may be contacted if their devices are among those recovered.

The discovery follows a series of thefts reported during this year’s Afro Nation festival, which attracted thousands of people to Praia da Rocha in Portimão. Earlier, the PSP said they had received more than 50 reports of pickpocketing during the event, although overall crime levels were lower than at last year’s festival.

Newspaper editor at The Portugal Resident