THE National Police are investigating what they consider a very serious crime which should also act as a warning to all drivers in Majorca.
Briton Aidan Hurren and his partner were the victims of a road attack in Palma last Friday as they headed to Andraitx to put the deposit down on their dream home where they were planning to start a new life in Majorca when they became the latest victims of road crime.
Mr. Hurren explained yesterday, after having spent all morning at the National police station, that his ordeal happened at 12.20 last Friday.
We had just left our bank and were heading out of Palma for a meeting in Andraitx.
We were stuck in the usual heavy traffic to get on to the Manacor roundabout near Ikea to join the Via Cintura.
When we came to pull off the roundabout, I suddenly realised we had a flat tyre.
We could not stop where we were, because of the traffic, so managed to move over to the side of the slip road.
Both my partner and I got out to replace the rear right hand side wheel. At first I thought it was just bad luck, until we had changed the wheel and got back in the car. That was when I realised that my bag, including a very sizeable amount of cash and all my personal and legal details which had been stashed under the front driver's seat had gone.
It was then I realised that we had been victims of an attack. The wheel had been slashed when we were stuck in the traffic jam. And, while we were changing the wheel, someone slipped into the front.
What remains a mystery however is whether the thieves, who used a switch blade to slash the wheel, were operating on foot, by car or on a motorcycle.
He went to the police last Friday, but says they did not take it too seriously. A text book case, a duty officer said.
However, yesterday he went to the British Consulate where a very kind and helpful woman telephoned the police, explained what had happened and how much money was involved.
Then they took it seriously as an attack, as they described it, of this kind has never been reported.
Mr. Hurren said that the police are well aware of a group of non-Europeans preying on tourists in vehicles using a similar modus operandi. They say they have never heard of a crime like this being carried out in broad daylight and involving such a large sum of money.
However, for the moment, the robbery has not deterred Mr Hurren from pushing ahead with plans to settle in Majorca. We love the idea of the kind of life we can have here and we're not going to put it off because of a few individuals, he said.
Although he admits he is still jumpy when stopping at traffic lights or pedestrian crossings. I keep wondering who is around, plus they have all my documents and know where I live. They might think there's more of that kind of money. What is also interesting is that Mr Hurren and his partner were travelling in a Spanish plated car. We did not stand out like tourists, although we're both blonde, but the fact a Spanish plated car was targeted means that anyone could be a possible victim, he said.
While Mr. Hurren goes about trying to save his property deal, he hopes that the story of his ordeal will act as a warning to others. When we first arrived here, people kept telling us how safe the island is and saying really nice things about living here. Like I said, it hasn't put us off yet, but it's made me think twice.