Key points
- Spanish police arrested the suspected founder and main promoter of the 'Blocus' network in Spain on Friday 30 October 2026, the Civil Guard said, in Picanya, near Valencia.
- Investigators accuse the suspect of creating and administering Telegram groups used to coordinate gatherings, and of presenting himself online as the person responsible for Blocus in Spain.
- The Civil Guard said the actions under investigation could amount to aggravated public disorder and organised crime, with the final legal classification still to come from the investigation.
- The arrest is linked to unrest in Barcelona on 24 October, in which around 500 people took part, according to the Civil Guard; Catalan police put the arrest total that night at 132, including 83 minors and 49 adults.
- Police are preparing deployments for demonstrations planned for 31 October, after messages in Blocus groups encouraged black clothing and Halloween masks — and, in some cases, looting and vandalism, Reuters reported.
Spanish police have arrested the man they suspect of founding and promoting the 'Blocus' network in Spain, one day before Halloween gatherings that officers fear could turn to looting. The Civil Guard made the arrest on Friday in Picanya, near Valencia, and said the operation was carried out before a new mobilisation announced for 31 October in several places across Spain. Read more: Barcelona police brace for fresh Halloween riots after weekend of looting and 130 arrests
Reuters, reporting from Madrid, said Spanish police described the suspect as the founder and main promoter of the local Blocus chapter, accused of using social media and online channels to exploit student protests and demonstrations as a cover for looting and violence. El País, citing the Civil Guard, reported that the suspect had presented himself on social media as the founder of the movement in Spain, and that he was accused of creating and administering Telegram groups from which the gatherings were coordinated.
The key figures
| Measure | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| People who took part in the 24 October Barcelona unrest | Around 500 | Civil Guard, via Reuters |
| People arrested over the 24 October Barcelona unrest | 132, including 83 minors and 49 adults | Catalan police, via Reuters |
| Other people linked to the group reported arrested on Friday | Six, according to the Interior Ministry | Reuters |
| Young people detained on Friday in connection with Blocus, as later reported | Eight, including one aged 16 | El País |
| Places named in Friday's further arrests | Alfafar, Bilbao, Sant Sadurní d'Anoia, Barcelona, Málaga and Tenerife | El País |
| Detentions in 48 hours related to the 31 October call, as reported | 10 | El País |
The Barcelona unrest behind the arrest
The investigation is linked to the disturbances in Barcelona on Saturday 24 October, when a gathering called on social media under the Blocus name ended in clashes, looting and vandalism in the city centre. Reuters reported that the Civil Guard put the number of participants at around 500, and that Catalan police said 132 people were arrested, including 83 minors and 49 adults. That figure is higher than the earliest tallies from the night, which put arrests at around 130 — a reminder that the numbers in a fast-moving investigation are revised as police reports are consolidated.
According to Reuters, the suspect is accused of disseminating a video featuring a hooded individual claiming to be the movement's leader, and of presenting himself on social media as the person responsible for Blocus in Spain. Telegram groups linked to the group, some with thousands of members, have been repeatedly shut down for violating the messaging platform's terms of service, Reuters reported. Investigators are also examining the spread of false alarm messages on social media: Madrid's Metro operator said on Thursday that reports circulating online of a bomb threat were a hoax.
What police expect on 31 October
The timing of the arrest is the point: it came as police were preparing security deployments for further demonstrations planned for 31 October, mirroring similar calls for action seen in France, Reuters reported. Messages in the groups encouraged participants to wear black clothing and Halloween masks on 31 October and, in some cases, promoted looting and vandalism. El País reported that the Civil Guard said the arrest had been achieved before the new mobilisation announced for 31 October — the clearest sign yet that police see the online network, rather than any single gathering, as the thing to break up.
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Further arrests followed across Spain on Friday. Reuters, citing Spain's Interior Ministry, reported that six other people linked to the group had been arrested. El País later reported that eight young people had been detained on Friday in connection with Blocus, in Alfafar near Valencia, Bilbao, Sant Sadurní d'Anoia, Barcelona, Málaga and two in the province of Tenerife — taking the reported total to 10 detentions in 48 hours related to the 31 October call. The two counts reflect reporting at different points in the day, not two different sets of arrests, and both outlets stress that the investigation is still open.
What happens next
What happens on the night of 31 October will test whether the arrests have disrupted the network. Police have said they are still investigating while preparing deployments, and the investigation's final legal classification — whether the alleged offences amount to aggravated public disorder and organised crime, as the Civil Guard has suggested — will be for the courts. The suspect, like everyone arrested in connection with Blocus, is accused, not convicted, and the presumption of innocence applies. Europe Unfolded will report what happens on the night, and whether the Halloween calls fizzle, are policed away, or turn into a second weekend of looting.
Updates & corrections
Published 30 October 2026.
No updates or corrections have been made to this article since publication.
Sources
- Reuters, "Spanish police arrest suspected founder of 'Blocus' group linked to looting", 30 October 2026, on the arrest of the suspected founder and main promoter of the local Blocus chapter, the accusation of using social media to exploit student protests as a cover for looting and violence, the six other people linked to the group reported arrested by the Interior Ministry, the Telegram groups and the hooded video, the link to the 24 October Barcelona unrest with around 500 participants according to the Civil Guard and 132 arrests including 83 minors and 49 adults according to Catalan police, the messages encouraging black clothing and Halloween masks on 31 October, the police deployments being prepared, and the Madrid Metro bomb-threat reports being a hoax: reuters.com
- El País, "Redada contra 'Blocus': detenido el presunto fundador en España y siete jóvenes más", 30 October 2026, on the arrest in Picanya (Valencia), the Civil Guard statement that the arrest came before the mobilisation announced for 31 October in several places in Spain, the accusation of creating and administering Telegram groups, the possible offences of aggravated public disorder and organised crime, the eight young people detained on Friday including one aged 16, the places named in the further arrests, and the 10 detentions in 48 hours related to the 31 October call: elpais.com