Two charged after Irishman (72) had €50k Rolex watch robbed at gunpoint in Portugal
ARMED RAID | The suspects will be held in a pre-trial detention centre until they go on trial.
Two men have been charged after an Irish pensioner had his €50k Rolex stolen during an armed robbery in a Portuguese resort.The alleged robbers – aged 24 and 34-years-old – have been remanded in custody in connection with a series of violent crimes targeting tourists in the Algarve, a popular area with tourists.According to the news website Sul Informacao, the suspects will be held in a pre-trial detention centre until the case is heard Last month, the 72-year-old Irish tourist was robbed by two armed men, near Quinta Shopping, in Quinta do Lago.The pensioner was held up at gunpoint on 29 August by two men wearing helmets before they fled the scene on a motorbike.An aerial overview of luxury villas located around Quinta do Lago, Algarve, PortugalThe shopping centre where the incident took place is at the entrance to the Quinta Do Lago resort and golf club which is owned by Denis O’Brien and across from the Conrad Algarve hotel which the Irish businessman is reportedly planning on buying for €100m.The area is popular with well-heeled Irish tourists.The same assailants involved in the robbery of the Irish tourist are also suspected of attempting to carry out a similar robbery of a 40-year-old English tourist in the nearby port town of Vilamoura the day before.In that incident, they hit the victim in the head with the butt of a firearm and tried to steal his Patek Philippe watch valued at more than €100,000.The brave tourist managed to fight off the gunmen who fled without getting the watch.They are also investigating whether they are linked to other similar incidents which have taken place in tourist areas in recent weeks.
