Over the past two and a half years, the PSP and GNR received 3340 complaints against private security guards. The number, recorded from 2013 to the first half of this year, meaning an average of more than three percentage shown a day in police stations and most of these, about 80%, refers to episodes where citizens complain that they have been assaulted by vigilant.
According to data from the two police provided to PUBLIC, there were 2651 complaints for crimes against physical integrity (of which 2609 submitted to the PSP) for which the security emerge as suspects. In Portugal, there are 62,000 vigilant with valid license, but only 38,000 are working.
The statistical police catch by surprise the Association of Private Security Companies (AESP). “The number seems to me high. It would be necessary to realize how many of these complaints have resulted in convictions. It surprises me a lot because mean a conflict for which we have no information, on the contrary, “said the president of the PEA, Rogério Alves.
Moreover, the old Order of bastonário Lawyers would stress that “the number is far from reflecting the reality of the quality of services provided by the overwhelming majority of private security companies.” Do not remove “significance of the number” concerned but is keen to dispel this context the “10 associated companies” of PEA representing 60% of the market.
For the leader, who nevertheless insists that “illicit must be punished “and that the” number can be a warning, “” perhaps the work focuses on undeclared private security [other companies] “are to” germinate unlawful behavior “and explain this” epiphenomenon within this phenomenon “even because the “PEA only has record of a number of residual complaints.”
Following the reported assaults, the most reported crimes, indicated by the PSP, are those against personal freedom (456), against honor ( 155) against the right to privacy (36), against freedom and sexual self-determination (13) and against life (6). The PSP still accounts for 5 complaints by “other crimes against the people”, not specifying.
The PSP data do not allow to realize that under the assaults occurred, in nightlife environments or during the day elsewhere, but the spokesman of the national direction PSP, subintendente Paul Flower, stresses that ” complaints have higher expression in all districts of the coastline of Portugal, except Viana do Castelo. “
One of the episodes of aggression by a security guard was recorded on video by PUBLIC at Cais do Sodre, Lisbon, on the morning of February in a shot within a multimedia work through which it sought to make “a mosaic of Portugal in 1440 minutes.” In the video you can see a man being beaten in color called Pink street by two men. One of them was away from the Cosmos security company, after the knowledge of the event.
These situations are very common in this area, as confirmed source of the Department of Investigation and Penal Action Lisbon, where several complaints arrive or information police for similar situations. Most of the time, it becomes difficult to identify the perpetrator or even the victim who prefers to forget the situation for fear of reprisals.
A detailed analysis of the statistics of the PSP, the police responsible for the control and supervision of the exercise of private security activities, allows us to see, moreover, that the number of citizens complaints is declining. In 2013, 1534 filed charges against vigilantes, while in 2014 and 1417 were in the first half of 2015 the number of complaints is 329.
Another fact that deserves the attention of the authorities is the number of illegal security, ie workers who work without the license issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The private security illegal practice is a crime and can be punished with a maximum sentence of two years in prison.
Between 2010 and 2015 (first half) the number of illegal private security guards detected by the PSP in its operations supervision was 761. However, there is a clear decline since 2010 were detected 243, a number that dropped to 101 in 2013, 15 in 2014 and in the first half of this year seven.
“It’s apparent that the illegal exercise of private security activities declined sharply since 2010, “says the subintendente Paulo Flower has also realized that Lisbon” has always been the district that contributes most to the values of illicit “.
In this regard, the PEA recently recommended to the Government, through the Private Security Council, to be created “disciplinary inspection commissions,” says Rogério Alves. This would imply that the agents of the PSP in the surveillance operations to places where work vigilantes, would join Authority inspectors to the Conditions at Work, Foreigners and Borders Service, Tax Authority and Customs and Social Security.
“The supervision would be more complete and that would be a first step to improve the fight against undeclared work and the focus of activity that eventually germinate illegal behavior. The PSP has done a commendable job, but we believe that this way would be improved, “argues Rogério Alves.
Undeclared work takes million in taxes to the state
AESP is finalizing a study on the current context of the exercise of private security activities in Portugal, an analysis that has never been done so far, according to Rogério Alves, who is president of PEA since 2010. He was succeeded in office by Ângelo Correia, former minister the Interior of Cavaco Silva, after being invited by member companies of PEA.
“There are several million euros every year are taken to the state coffers, since that would be due in charge of headquarters and single social tax, “said the lawyer, referring to illegal private security work. The study should be ready in the next two months.
The illegalities in the sector, the violation of the principles of business ethics and fair competition and compliance with labor and tax rules are some of the questions that the management team the PEA will seek to respond, said the association in a statement when Rogério Alves took office.
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