Seventeen people were arrested by Public Security Police (PSP) officers during this month’s Afro Nation festival, which ended on Sunday, 5 July, at the nightlife hotspot of Praia da Rocha in Portimão.
The multi-day event hosted around 40,000 festival-goers across one weekend, generating a massive cultural and economic impact for the Algarve region. Not only that, but it is one of the world’s largest Afrobeats festivals.
In a statement summarising the policing operation, the PSP said it had deployed a special security operation to manage the influx of thousands of festivalgoers attending the event.
Over the three-day festival, 17 people were arrested for a range of offences, with the most common including drug trafficking, driving without a licence, and drink-driving.
Police also recorded offences relating to drug use, as well as irregularities involving commercial activities carried out by businesses operating in the Praia da Rocha area.
Property crimes, including theft, totalled 36 reported incidents, significantly down from the 80 recorded during last year's festival.
"Although these figures remain provisional, given the legal timeframe within which victims may still lodge formal complaints, the reduction recorded is a positive indication that the policing operation was appropriate and that the enhanced police presence had a preventive effect," the PSP said.
Overall, the force concluded that the urban security operation carried out in Portimão had "achieved its objectives".
Source: PSP
Photo credit: Inside Algarve
