There are figures that reveal realities better than any rhetoric. In the first quarter of 2025, San Bartolomé de Tirajana—the tourist hub of southern Gran Canaria—recorded 1.252 criminal offenses, according to data from the Ministry of the Interior, reported by media outlets such as Canarias7 or Epdata.esThe figure, according to the Government Delegation, represents a slight decrease of 1,34% compared to the same period last year. But as is almost always the case in this country, statistics are best viewed with a fine-tooth comb… and with distrust.
Citizen safety isn't just a marketing issue. It's the foundation on which Maspalomas' entire tourism narrative rests. Without it, what remains is a backdrop crumbling at the edges. And in this process, not only is the destination's image at risk, but its economic future is at risk. Who's to say? Maspalomas, transformed into a public revenue engine, the fiscal engine that sustains half the regional government and the Valkian messes of Las Palmas, could be devouring itself, driven by political negligence and rising crime. But while reggaeton plays on the terraces, no one seems to want to turn off the music.
Because what the overall figure doesn't include is that crimes against sexual freedom have tripled, and rapes have doubled. There was one completed homicide. Although violent robberies fell to 1 cases (–20%) and home burglaries to 45,9 (–19%), the truth is that the general climate of street insecurity and institutional disarray are going in the opposite direction.
In total, the municipality closed the last year with 3.352 criminal offenses. Of these, 1.314 were thefts; 88 robberies with violence; 88 robberies with force; and 35 crimes against sexual freedom, 5 of which involved penetration. In cybercrime, the figure now reaches 284 cases, of which 249 are frauds, while the digital crime rate in the Canary Islands has increased by 14,8%. Added to this is an alarming rise in drug trafficking, which, according to police sources, has doubled.
Do you know how many criminal offenses are recorded per 1.000 inhabitants in this tourist mecca? Around 57 in the municipality as a whole, but the figure rises to 63 in Playa del Inglés, the heart of the hotel and nightlife tourism industry. Figures worthy of a peripheral city under pressure, not a global tourist showcase.
And yet, the institutional response oscillates between cosmetics and paralysis. There is no strategic plan, no real reinforcement of patrols, and no visible political leadership. The mayor's office, more concerned with electoral aesthetics, has not made a move. The City Council, for its part, is neither here nor expected. Meanwhile, the National Police struggle to cover day-to-day needs with limited resources, and the Local Police remain trapped in their administrative labyrinth.
This deterioration isn't new, but it's more evident than ever. The southern tourism model—based on volume, quick profits, and saturated and poorly regulated urban planning—has entered a dangerous phase. Crime is no longer a peripheral phenomenon, but a structural component of the ecosystem. How can drug trafficking not increase when there are uncontrolled establishments, tourist apartments without effective regulations, and a parallel economic circuit that moves faster than any official bulletin?
