More than 9,000 stolen archaeological relics recovered in Valencia

The Civil Guard have recovered thousands of archaeological relics from a gang of 12 looters who have been arrested in Valencia. Many of the items recovered are coins from different periods of history and are of great importance, both historically and scientifically.

They were stolen from archaeological digs in the Valencia and Castilla-La Mancha regions.

The Interior Ministry said in a press release on Wednesday that more than 9,000 items were recovered in the 13 property searches which took place as part of Operation Necropolis. Officers also seized metal detectors and maps of digs in the two regions.

The group selected digs in isolated areas and looted them on a daily basis, always early in the morning when no-one was on site. They would then clean up their daily haul for onward sale.

The Civil Guard notes that Spain’s Historical Heritage Law expressly forbids searching for any archaeological relics without authorisation, and any objects which are found by chance must be immediately handed in to the authorities.