Police in the Algarve had a busy weekend as they detained nine individuals in Portimão, Lagos and Olhão for a variety of offences.
On Sunday afternoon, the Olhão police stopped a Portuguese citizen, 39, at one of the entrances to the football stadium for having pockets full of hashish.
Later the same day in Portimão they detained a 26-year-old driver for refusing a breath or blood test after a minor road accident.
On Saturday in Faro a foreign national was picked up for being in Portugal illegally and on the same day in Portimão, the police stopped a Portuguese 24-year-old man on suspicion of theft at a food and drink store.
The alarm had gone off so the burglar legged it before being trapped and caught by officers driving an unmarked police car.
The backpack contained three knives, three torches, and a small amount of cocaine. He will be done for damaging the property as the polcie found no stolen goods.
On Saturday night, two arrests were made in Lagos of drivers who were well over the alcohol limit.
A 40-year-old Portuguese citizen and a foreigner aged 35 were stopped, breathalised and found to be technically drunk.
Last Friday night the police in Portimão arrested two Portuguese 16-year-olds for driving without legal authorisation to do so.
Also last Friday the food safety authority ASAE seized nine tons of meat products and frozen fish during a national enforcement action involving pulling over 1,325 vehicles.
Operation Circle aimed to "check the condition of freight being delivered at the main access roads to major urban centres from industrial and markets suppliers."
The authority was looking at sanitary conditions, food transport temperatures, the condition of the delivery vehicles and of course checking that the Guia de Transporte paperwork matched the loads.
ASAE, helped by the police and GNR, inspected 1,325 vehicles and checked more than 1,500 tons of various products including meat, fish, fruit and vegetables, bakery products and drinks.
ASAE seized about nine tons of fresh meat, frozen meat and frozen fish and registered 17 offences, primarily for poor hygiene, poor vehicle condition for the transport of food and the lack of temperature control recording equipment.
The purge was nationwide but in the Algarve covered Faro and Albufeira.
