Just this morning on TeleMadrid I saw a DISTURBING report and videos regarding some contracted Metro security guards abusing at least 2 persons in the metro halls.

It seems the abused persons did not have a metro ticket - BUT IT DOESN'T MATTER.

Watch the two VERY disturbing videos and read the El País article about it HERE and on YouTube HERE

Also the Channel 6 and CNN+ video report on the same case at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFD7L4I4qtQ

One of the videos, the man, possibly of Latin American decent (not that is matters), is walking towards the metro exit when a security guard winds up and SMACKS the man on the back of his head, then kindly picks up the man's fallen hat and hands it to him.

Another video, a man is lying on the ground when the "team" of 4 or 5 security guards arrive and pick him up. While talking to him, the man drops his eyes for a moment and the security guard punches the man across the face, causing him to fall to the ground. After the man gets up, he leans over to pick up something and another guard kicks the man in the rear end causing him to fall again while the other guards laugh.

Watching these videos makes my blood boil.

According to the article on El País, at least ONE of the security guards was fired last August 2007 - ONLY AFTER someone delivered an envelope to the security company which employs the guard, an envelope which contained two videos of the guard's abuses. Apparently, the security company knew about the abuses before the receipt of the videos but only after the videos surfaced was the guard fired.

Comments? Share your thoughts or anger.

Saludos, MadridMan

Let me just catch my breath on this one ... I just watched the video .. I'm going to come back with a full comment but I would hope someone identifies the victims of this and that someone , somewhere extends legal aid to make sure these morons masquerading as security guards face the full force of the ( real ) law . I am certain that anybody , Spanish or otherwise will be sickened by this . Steve

wow
not very pleasant is it?
it looks like one of the police were taking the video for there own use (could be wrong)there is no need for that kind of violence it reminds me of something not to to long ago in Madrid,if they are doing something wrong ,then arrest them fair enough but what kind of message is given out to the "nasty" people if the police who are supposed to protect us get away with this kind of violence

(very nice news readers by the way)

It seems this issue isn't very important to people - to my great surprise!! I'd think there'd be demonstrations in the street over this!

A Friday newspaper article stated that one of the "aggressors in security clothing" was fired Thursday.

steve robinson, I too am surprised that by now the victims haven't come forward since their faces have been on all the major (and minor! ) news media. Maybe they've moved on. Who knows. They have a good criminal case against these horrible people, the security company, the Madrid metro, and probably even against the city of Madrid. You'd think some attorney could get millions in punitive damages for them.

Punitive damages (termed exemplary damages in the United Kingdom) are damages not awarded in order to compensate the plaintiff, but in order to reform or deter the defendant and similar persons from pursuing a course of action such as that which damaged the plaintiff.

Butttt... this isn't the United States so maybe the victims have no rights to punitive damages in this case here in Madrid. No sé....

What goes on in these videos simply must not be tolerated.

I still find it hard to get used to police carrying guns, so when you see private security guards with them too, it is a little intimidating. How answerable are these companies and their employees ? What system is there to keep them in line ? For me the policing of a public transport system should not be the responsibility of a private force, but the police.

What I understand of Spanish law, yes the victims could legally go after all the parties you mentioned above, and maybe also the police for neglect of duties. Perhaps it will take one of them to do so before the government looks at the existing system.

Maybe I am wrong, but all of the victims seemed to be immigrants......

Is there a growing tension in Spain regarding them?

I know that immigration is becoming a problem in Western Europe.....

And Spaniards are not particularly tolerant of or accepting of people from other countries. Especially those from the "conquered worlds".

I say this with love...I am a Spain-o-phile.

But thugs are thugs. And these seem like thugs.

I guess my point is....if the victims are not Spaniards, maybe that is why there is less outrage.

Maybe some of you guys will have seen that the Spanish press are definitely NOT forgetting this whole situation with the " vigilantes " . www.20minutos.es has a sub headline of "Uno de los vigilantes jurados que aparece en varios de los vídeos de agresiones en el Metro de Madrid publicados por 20 minutos también se grababa a sí mismo manteniendo relaciones sexuales o haciendo de vientre en el trabajo."

Politely it translates that one of the agressors has other videos of himself engaged in sexual and obscene/indecent acts .

I guess this story's going to run a bit longer !

Those events are a shame for the Spanish people. Fortunately they are very unsual.
Metro security forces are not policemen, just private security guards. In some cases the companies hiring them don't care what kind of people they could be.

Saludos.