The block of Muntaner street that accumulates 49 police interventions for intensive drug use

BarcelonaSince the beginning of the year, the situation in a property on Muntaner street in Barcelona has forced police forces to pay special attention to it. For months, neighbors have called 112 dozens of times and the Mossos d'Esquadra have intervened there on up to 49 occasions. The main reasons: on the one hand, arguments, threats and incidents that make neighbors feel unsafe and, on the other hand, alleged possession of drugs. But, as ARA has been able to ascertain, the ongoing police investigations have not been able to confirm that there is a drug den – where drugs are sold and consumed – nor is there any report of the property being occupied.

"112 already knows us," admitted a resident of the building this Thursday in statements to RAC1. According to her testimony, the conflict dates back to February 2025, when a new owner moved into one of the 24 apartments in the building. When this person stopped living there, the disturbances and fights reportedly escalated. Other people are now living there and there are no reports of squatting.

The incidents allegedly reached the point of seeing a man on the stairs with a knife or others breaking down the door to get in, according to the testimony of this same neighbor. The owners of the other apartments in the building have tried to report the dwelling as a drug den after seeing the constant traffic of people entering and leaving the apartment showing signs of having consumed drugs. Due to the feeling of insecurity, the residents in the building have opted to hire a private security service.

Mossos sources assure that they have acted in response to calls to the 112 emergency phone number and formal complaints, with various checks in situ and communicating with the community of owners. They add that they will continue to respond to incidents that are reported to them and to monitor the situation.

Complaints

For their part, municipal sources explain that both the Guàrdia Urbana and the Eixample district are aware of the situation. The homeowners' association has filed several petitions with the City Council, and an inspection ruled out that the property was being used as a tourist apartment. The affected parties also sought legal advice from the council, and they were recommended to agree as a community to judicially report the disturbances they are suffering.

So far, complaints in the judicial sphere have focused on claims of non-payment to the homeowners' association and those made at the municipal level concern sanitation. In parallel, following this case, the College of Property Administrators of Barcelona and Lleida (CAFBL) has called for property communities to have more tools to report cases of squatting that affect coexistence and security.

Sources familiar with the case distinguish the situation of this building from that which had been experienced with drug houses in other areas of the Catalan capital, mainly in the Raval neighborhood. They add that, although it had been feared that police pressure could cause these drug dealing and consumption points to move to the Eixample – and some have been detected so far – the situation is far from comparable to what was experienced in Ciutat Vella.