Squatters at a hotel in Mallorca

Two of the four squatters. | Alejandro Sepulveda

Andrew EdeSon Servera17/01/2025 08:46
TW
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Miquel Deyà of the Sol y Mar Aparthotel in Cala Bona says that he has been contacted by an anonymous source who has asked for 300,000 euros to end the occupation by squatters. He explains that another member of the hotel management has also been contacted. This other demand was for 240,000 euros. For Deyà this is a clear case of blackmail and one to which the hotel will not accede. The management will take the appropriate legal measures for dealing with a situation that potentially sets a dangerous precedent for Mallorca's hotel sector.

There is currently a bizarre scenario at the hotel. It has been confirmed that there are four squatters still on the premises. There are other individuals who are managing to supply them with food and water. They insist that they have no interest in any extorsion. "We don't want money, just a home," says one, adding that they handed over between 800 and 1,000 euros to someone called Dimitri so that they could enter apartments in the hotel.

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According to one of them, he has been squatting since November. Another one of the four has apparently been there since December. The hotel management believe that this is impossible. The first the management knew about the squatters was last Sunday. At the end of October, when the hotel closed for the season, the water and electricity were cut off.

Meanwhile, and with the Guardia Civil or police a permanent presence in the area, some maintenance work is being carried out. This includes repairing or changing locks.

On Thursday, the Balearic tourism minister, Jaume Bauzá, visited the hotel. He was able to speak to the oldest of the squatters, Antonio, and told him that the solution for his situation was not to squat but to go to social services. Antonio told the minister he understood his position, adding "we don't want problems" and suggesting that the hotel was "coercing" them.