Two men have been arrested over the theft of 16 motorcycles in Barcelona and its metropolitan area, according to the Mossos d'Esquadra, Catalonia's regional police. Police say the pair have more than 20 previous offences between them and are accused of stealing bikes, disabling their geolocation systems and moving them in a rented van to isolated properties.
For motorcycle owners in Barcelona and nearby municipalities, the case matters because police say the group was operating across the wider metropolitan area rather than in a single district. The Mossos said the investigation links the two suspects to 16 thefts and that officers dismantled the group on Friday 11 July.
The gang would select the motorcycles they intended to steal, disable their geolocation systems, and load them into a rented van to transport them to secluded properties.
What police say happened
According to information published on 11 July by EFE and carried by Infobae, the two suspects were part of a group dedicated to stealing motorcycles in Barcelona's metropolitan area. The Mossos have not publicly identified the men by name.
Police say the group first chose specific motorcycles, then removed or disabled their tracking systems before taking them away in a rented van. The bikes were then transported to secluded properties, according to the Mossos account reported by EFE.
What this means for owners
The case is a reminder that a tracking device may not prevent a theft if the vehicle is moved quickly and the geolocation system is disabled. Owners in Barcelona and surrounding towns may need to check promptly if a parked motorcycle has been moved and report a suspected theft without delay to the Mossos d'Esquadra.
Police have not given a full list of the municipalities affected in this latest case, but they said the thefts were committed in Barcelona and its metropolitan area.
- Suspects arrested: two men
- Thefts attributed by police: 16 motorcycles
- Date reported: Friday 11 July 2026
Motorcycle theft remains a persistent problem in Barcelona
The latest arrests come after the Mossos said in May 2024 that 2,587 motorcycles were stolen in Barcelona during 2023, about seven a day. Of those, 1,028 were recovered, and 119 people were arrested for vehicle theft or taking vehicles without consent, according to figures given by Jordi Almendros, a subinspector in the Barcelona Criminal Investigation Division.
In that same briefing, the Mossos said they had recovered 16 stolen motorcycles on 16 May 2024 during a special operation in central Barcelona, in which officers checked 1,300 motorcycles to verify whether they had been stolen.
Anyone who believes their motorcycle may have been stolen should contact the Mossos d'Esquadra as soon as possible and provide the vehicle registration and any tracking information available.
Reported by Source Text Link, infobae.com, europapress.es, Guillem RS, Marc Rovira, lavanguardia.com, motorpasionmoto.com, diaridetarragona.com, El Periódico, 3CatInfo, EFE, Barna Diario, Arnau Raimundo, Orsolya Gazdagi, Metrópoli Abierta - Urban Life.
