The Republican National Guard (GNR) and the Public Security Police (PSP) detained more than 130 people in the last 48 hours in connection with road crimes, during ongoing inspection operations during the festive period.
Between 00:00 on the 18th and 23:59 on the 19th of December, within the scope of Operation “Christmas and New Year 2025/2026”, the GNR inspected 14,977 drivers, of which 68 were driving with excess alcohol and, of these, 51 were arrested for driving with a blood alcohol level equal to or greater than 1.2 g/lsays a statement.
The GNR also detained 24 people for driving without a legal license.
According to the press release, 3,049 road traffic offenses were also observed, of which 479 for speeding, 17 for excessive alcohol consumption, 64 for lack of or incorrect use of a seat belt and/or child restraint system, 98 for improper use of a cell phone while driving, 356 for lack of mandatory periodic inspection and 117 for lack of mandatory civil liability insurance.
During this period, the GNR recorded 433 accidents in its area of responsibility, resulting in one fatality (in Torres Vedras), seven serious injuries and 108 minor injuries.
During Operation “Polícia Always Present – Parties in Safety 2025-2026”, in the last 48 hours the PSP made 143 arrests throughout the national territory, including 57 related to road crimes: 38 for drunk driving and 19 for lack of legal driving license.
3,456 drivers and 20,438 vehicles were inspected by radar, with 1,138 infractions detected, of which the PSP highlights 213 for driving at excessive speed, 96 for lack of mandatory periodic inspection, 41 for lack of mandatory civil liability insurance, 24 for improper use of a cell phone while driving, 11 for lack or incorrect use of a seat belt and/or child restraint system and 11 for driving under the influence of alcohol.
Regarding road accidents, in the PSP’s area of responsibility, there were 404 accidentsresulting in one fatality (Abrantes), seven serious injuries and 113 minor injuries.
The PSP also detained seven people for crimes against property (theft and robbery) and 17 suspects for drug trafficking, with 42,149 individual doses being seized, the Public Security Police said in a statement.
The PSP also seized three firearms, eight bladed weapons, 24 ammunition, two other weapons and 6,676 pyrotechnic items.
Both the GNR and the PSP began Christmas and New Year operations on Thursday, with increased policing focused on road inspectionuse of pyrotechnics and crime prevention in commercial and residential areas.
The two operations, which end on January 4th, have two phases: Christmas, between December 18th and 26th, and New Year, between December 27th and January 4th.
During the first phase of the operation, the GNR decided to reinforce patrolling on the main roads towards the north and, during the New Year period, inspection actions will be more intense on the southern roads.
The GNR also says that it will be particularly attentive to driving under the influence of alcohol and psychotropic substances, speeding, the use of cell phones, seat belts and child seats and the lack of mandatory insurance.