Irish woman arrested for failing to pay family's hotel bill in Gran Canaria

Fraud

The family of three had stayed for nearly two weeks at an all-inclusive hotel and left without settling the bill

Natalia Penza

An Irish mum has been arrested and accused of trying to do a runner from her Spanish holiday hotel without paying a 2,400-euro bill.

The woman was held at Gran Canaria Airport after alleging problems with the bank card she had used to book her all-inclusive near-fortnight family stay before “blanking” hotel staff trying to contact her after she left the hotel.

She had checked in with her partner and a child.

Airport cops arrested her for fraud and took her to a police station in the resort town of Maspalomas on Gran Canaria’s southern coast before handing her over to a judge.

Police have not released her age but confirmed on Friday she is Irish.

It was not immediately clear on Friday what had happened at court.

A spokesman for the National Police on the holiday island said this Friday: “Officers have arrested a young foreign woman as the alleged perpetrator of a fraud offence after she allegedly left a hotel in the municipality of San Bartolome de Tirajana without paying for a stay valued at 2,483 euros.

“The investigation began after the hotel management reported that a family consisting of two adults and one minor had left the premises after staying for eleven nights on an all-inclusive basis without settling the bill.

“According to the complaint, the reservation was made through the hotel's website with a bank card provided as a guarantee.

“However, when the hotel attempted to charge the card after the stay had ended, the payment method did not allow the transaction to be completed.

“Hotel staff repeatedly attempted to contact the person who had made the reservation in order to resolve the situation.

“Although she initially stated that she intended to make the payment, claiming she was unable to access her bank card because she was already at the airport, she ultimately ceased all communication without paying the outstanding amount.

“After becoming aware of the incident, National Police officers launched a search that enabled them to identify the alleged offender at the border control post at Gran Canaria Airport, where she was arrested before leaving the island.

“Following the arrest and the completion of the appropriate judicial procedures, the detainee was taken to the Maspalomas National Police Station for the preparation of the corresponding case file and was subsequently brought before the judicial authorities.”

The police force added in a statement: “The National Police remains firmly committed to protecting the Canary Islands' tourism sector, a key pillar of the archipelago's economy, by strengthening cooperation with hotels to combat any type of criminal activity affecting their operations.

“It also reminds visitors that attempts to evade payment for contracted services will be subject to police investigation in order to determine any criminal liability that may apply.”

The hotel has not been named.