Trained to Steal

Earlier this month my wife and I were winding up an extended trip to Europe with a Saturday shopping trip in Madrid. The Metro train at Atocha Station was crowded with shoppers, but we were able to squeeze in. As we waited for the doors to close, a band of young men in their 20s rushed in, elbowing people aside and closely surrounding me. A man behind me cut the belt of my “fanny pack,” and the man in front grabbed it as the entire group rushed off the train before the doors closed.

The “fanny pack” contained personal items but, fortunately, no travel documents.

The shear audacity of the attack in broad daylight was totally unexpected. The split-second timing was admirable, but not something of which the Spanish people should be proud.

RALPH WENTERS

Torrance