On the afternoon of Wednesday, July 2, the town of Alcalá de Henares witnessed a massive demonstration in front of the Emergency Reception Center for Immigrants (CAED), following the arrest of a 21-year-old Malian immigrant accused of brutally raping a young Spanish woman on June 28.
Residents, blaming the center for a surge in crime and fear in the neighborhood, took to the streets to demand its immediate closure and the deportation of all illegal immigrants. The protest, called through social media and supported by the patriotic youth organization Revuelta, remained peaceful until police charged at the demonstrators. National Police agents—in coordination with local police—fired foam bullets at close range, a tactic restricted even in border control operations.
Protesters chanted slogans such as “our children are not to be touched” and “remigration now.” According to official sources, four people were arrested: three for public disorder and one for resisting arrest.
Jaime Hernández, an activist from Revuelta, denounced the police repression, calling it disproportionate and politically motivated: “They tried to lock us down under political orders. There was a massive police presence, both national and local. Meanwhile, the mayor was completely absent,” he told europeanconservative.com. “Mothers and young girls told us they’re afraid to go outside because they fear being the next victims,” he added.
Hernández thanked the locals for their courage: “Residents asked us for help; they are afraid to show their faces because of the political consequences they may face, given the policy of silence surrounding immigration.” He recounted that security cameras captured the attacker forcing the victim to take a selfie with him—a chilling detail that underscores the brutality of the crime.
The rapist was identified and arrested on Tuesday, July 1, thanks to the cooperation of a witness who aided the victim after hearing her screams. According to the police, the alleged perpetrator lives in the CAED, a center currently housing over 2,000 immigrants and which has seen more than 8,000 pass through since opening in November 2023. The facility, located in a densely populated urban area, has sparked multiple complaints from neighbors over loud parties, noise, and rising crime.
VOX has called for the immediate shutdown of the center. The party’s spokesperson in Alcalá, Víctor Acosta, described the assault as “extremely serious” and said the case illustrates “the failure of the multicultural model imposed by the Left, which has turned entire neighborhoods and cities into unsafe places for Spaniards.”
The tension in this Madrid town reflects growing discontent with the management of illegal immigration. What happened in Alcalá de Henares is not an isolated incident but a symptom of a migration policy detached from reality and from the right of Spanish citizens to live safely in their own neighborhoods.
