La Laguna Police Seize Over 2,700 Unsafe Toys in Christmas Campaign

La Laguna's local police have seized over 2,700 toys from three shops in the area. This was part of a safety campaign to make sure Christmas toys meet current rules and are safe for children.

The operation is part of the 'Safe Toy' campaign. Its goal is to ensure all toys sold follow European legal standards, especially since so many are bought during Christmas and Three Kings' Day.

Out of all the toys seized, 1,595 came from one bazaar. The shop with the fewest seized items had 307.

The campaign happens in stages. First, the police make a list of all local businesses that might sell toys. Then, they visit these shops to check for any safety rule violations.

If they find problems, they conduct a full inspection of the shop. If necessary, they seize the products, which is what happened at the three shops already inspected.

Most issues found were with the CE mark. This mark must be clear, easy to read, and correctly placed. Some toys either didn't have the mark or had a fake one that didn't meet European rules. Examples include letters that were too close, poorly drawn, not raised, inside a square instead of a circle, or incorrectly labeled "China Export."

Other problems included poor labeling. This meant missing age warnings, instructions not in Spanish, or incomplete information on the packaging.

After seizing the items, officers thoroughly identify each product, noting its name, batch, manufacturer, and exporter. One of each seized toy is sent to consumer protection authorities with the paperwork. The remaining toys are packed and stored at the police station.

The toys stay there until consumer authorities decide if they should be destroyed, or if the owner will remove them and provide proof of destruction.

The local police reported that all shop owners cooperated during the checks.

The Safe Toy campaign will run until January 6th, Three Kings' Day. La Laguna's mayor, Luis Yeray Gutiérrez, supported this effort to protect children and ensure only safe, legal toys are sold.

Badel Albelo, the Councilor for Citizen Security, said the campaign has already started with several actions and will continue actively throughout the Christmas period.

During the holidays, La Laguna City Council also runs other prevention campaigns. These include 'Safe Commerce' to prevent robberies in shopping areas, and traffic checks to stop drunk or drugged driving, especially on Thursdays and Fridays.

They are also checking licenses at shops allowed to sell fireworks, to make sure they follow specific rules.