Mossos Seek Judicial Authorisation to Track Blocus Network

The Mossos d'Esquadra will request urgent judicial authorisation to identify those responsible for the call that ended in looting in Barcelona. There were 130 arrests, 74 of whom were minors.

The call that led to looting in the centre of Barcelona was spread over several days on TikTok, through about twenty groups sharing the slogan Blocus. According to the Interior Minister, Núria Parlon, the Mossos d'Esquadra will seek urgent judicial authorisation to track these networks and find out who is behind them.

The platforms do not provide their servers or private messages without a court order. With that authorisation, investigators will be able to request basic registration data, such as username, email, associated phone numbers, and IP addresses, as well as information about specific profiles or groups.

The protest was presented as a defence of public education, but ended in looting of electronics, jewellery, and clothing stores, as well as container fires. Some of the stolen products later appeared for sale on second-hand platforms. Dozens of customers at a department store had to remain locked in for hours.

The Catalan police deployed more than 500 agents, but were unable to contain the rioters, who gathered around 600 people. The tally for Saturday was 130 arrests, of which 74 were minors. The chief commissioner, Sílvia Catà, explained that most live in Catalonia and did not come from other territories.

“The gratuitous violence,” according to the Interior Minister, Núria Parlon, was also supported by the mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, and the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa.

Amid suspicions of a hybrid attack from a foreign power on the eve of elections, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, indicated that there are currently no signs of this, although he admitted that there have been “interferences” in recent electoral processes in Europe. The investigation by the Mossos remains open.

To prevent further disturbances, the operational coordination centre was activated in Egara, the headquarters of the Mossos in Sabadell. New calls for Blocus appeared for Gerona and Granollers, where police deployed forces, but no incidents occurred.

The fear now is that the riots will repeat on 31 October, again in the Catalan capital. For the residents of Barcelona, the question is whether the judicial response will arrive in time to identify the promoters before that date.