Man’s warning after gang of women stole his gold necklace

A COVENTRY man has warned other tourists after a gang of women stole his £500 gold necklace during his lads’ holiday in Benidorm.

Ian Mccranor, 63, a personal trainer and karate champion from Coventry, flew to the Spanish resort in November with his mates. However, he said his getaway soon turned into a nightmare after he was targeted by thieves.

Ian said he was walking past a popular nightclub in Benidorm, the Morgan Tavern, with his friends when a group of women surrounded them. He didn’t think much of it, and assumed they were being friendly as there was a party atmosphere in the well-known tourist spot.

A few moments later, he said a woman told him that one of the group had stolen his gold chain. He said he then felt his neck and realised the chain had disappeared.

Recalling the incident, Ian saikd: “Myself a few friends were in Benidorm for the annual November Festival. We had been out to few clubs and were actually heading back to our hotel when we became surrounded by a small group of women who were putting their arms around everyone who walked past them.

“It was no different to what everyone does in a party atmosphere really. One minute I was walking along the road, the next I had a woman’s arms around me.

“Then a lady to my right grabbed me, shouting ‘She’s just robbed your gold chain!’ I felt my neck and sure enough the chain was gone.”

He said he then grabbed hold of the woman who stole his necklace. Two passers-by managed to take the necklace away from her, and handed it back to Ian.

They then fled the scene. Thankfully, no one was injured - but Ian saw this as a lesson learned to be careful while out on the town in Benidorm.

He added: “I grabbed hold of the offending women as the other lady and her husband grabbed the chain from her. It all happened so fast, these were really professionals, I then heard someone else shout, ‘Look out for their minders, they are carrying,’ meaning they had weapons.

“The offending lady and her accomplices made a quick exit, and they were gone. Nobody was hurt and we made our way back to the hotel.

“The next day I heard some horrifying stories about people who have lost jewellery, wallets, and pretty much everything in the same kind of situation. I was then told that there are some sophisticated organised gangs preying on revellers. My advice to anyone visiting these very popular resorts is to only take out the amount of cash, that you are going to need and leave all valuables in a hotel room safe.”