The capital of Spain is shielded this weekend by more than 500 police, following a wave of violence that began last Saturday and left two young people aged 15 and 25 stabbed to death at the hands of the Latin street gang Dominican Don't Play (DDP).
The central government delegate in the Madrid region, Mercedes González, has announced the implementation of a new 'Action Plan against youth gangs', which in its initial phase will be in force from February 10 to 28 in 11 districts of Madrid, in the municipality of Parla and in other nine towns in the Madrid region: Arganda, Las Rozas, Humanes, Torrelodones, Valdemoro, Galapagar, Ciempozuelos, Paracuellos and Collado Villalba.
In Madrid, 514 police officers are deployed in the Metro and other public transport stations, in leisure areas and parks to avoid the presence of gang members with bladed weapons. The Spanish authorities remind that it is forbidden to carry these weapons when the blade exceeds 11 centimeters in length.
According to Gonzalez, the objective of this massive security operation is "to detect and identify members of these violent gangs, prevent their proliferation and neutralize the criminal escalation that we have been detecting since the end of last year."
Members of the national police will participate in the operation together with the Madrid Municipal Police.
11 Madrid districts
The deployment will take place in the Madrid districts of Carabanchel, Latina, Puente de Vallecas, Usera, Villaverde, Fuencarral, Centro, Arganzuela, Ciudad Lineal, San Blas and Hortaleza, in addition to the municipality of Parla.
According to the Spanish authorities, in these areas the police have detected young active members of these gangs.
The delegate of the central government asked the citizens for "peace of mind" because, she says, "we are in good hands."
A message to young people
"The Police have been working for months and will not stop until they neutralize the gangs," she said.
She also sent a message to the young people to whom she told that the street gangs "are not a game, they are a very dangerous path that leads to delinquency and that can ruin and end their lives."
Meanwhile, the investigation of the fatal stabbings crimes perpetrated the previous weekend continues. On Thursday, the Civil Guard announced the arrest of 11 members of the Dominican Don't Play, three of them allegedly linked to the murder perpetrated in the Madrid district of Usera.
