People gather at terrace bar at the port of Ibiza. To curb the spread of coronavirus cases, the regional government of the Balearic Islands has only allowed clubs with a capacity of 300 or less to open - and only for drinking. There cannot be a dance floor and revellers must remain seated. Photo by JAIME REINA / AFP
Madrid, Spain - Spain's party island of Ibiza plans to hire young private detectives who can pass as tourists to help local authorities find out where illegal parties that violate virus restrictions will be held.
The Mediterranean island's famous nightclubs which attract famous DJs from around the world are shut due to the pandemic, leading to a boom in private parties.
With Covid-19 infections surging on the island, the local government is looking for detectives aged 30 to 40 who "find the parties before they start" and tip off police, said the spokesman for the government of Ibiza, Armando Tur.
The illegal parties are often held in homes in the countryside to try to evade detection and can draw over 500 people, the spokesman said.
They are organised by "mafias" which sometimes charge 100 euros ($120) per person to enter and look for clients on social media or outside of bars, he added.
Ibiza has already received several applications from across Europe but it is only interested in hiring professional detectives, Tur said.
The Balearic Islands, which include Ibiza, have one of Spain's highest Covid-19 infection rates, driven mainly by the more contagious Delta variant.
To try to curb the spread of the virus the regional government of the Balearics at the end of July banned all gatherings between people who do not live together between 1:00 am and 6:00 am.
A student trip in June to the island of Majorca, also part of the Balearics, resulted in a major Covid-19 outbreak that infected thousands of people across Spain.
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