No link between immigration and crime « Euro Weekly News

Shortly after the news of the murder of a seven-year-old in a small town in the province of Toledo, social networks were full of reports that a Moroccan was to blame. Shortly afterwards, the real perpetrator was arrested and it turned out that he was not of foreign origin at all. But the image was already anchored in the minds of social network users.

In Andalusia, 9% of the population is foreign, mainly a mix of North Africans, Europeans and Americans. 7% of crime in the region is committed by foreigners. All of the top violent crime stories in recent years have been about crimes committed by Spanish criminals. Yet reading the press and social media, you might think there is a link between immigration and crime figures.

Connection between crime and immigration ruled out

In 2022, 82,489 crimes were registered in Andalusia, of which 17% were committed by foreigners. Taking into account that the proportion of foreigners in Andalusia is 9% and in some provinces such as Almería it exceeds 21%, in Malaga almost 17% and in Huelva more than 9.6%, and considering that the vast majority of them are of African origin, with the proportion of Maghreb and sub-Saharan Africans higher than those of other origins, a link between immigration and crime is ruled out.

According to a recent document published by the Interior Ministry, most crimes committed by foreigners, including Europeans, were theft or drug trafficking, while violent crimes were largely committed by native Spaniards. Juanma Moreno, president of the Junta de Andalucía, responded to Vox in the Spanish parliament last week: “I will never participate in a witch hunt against immigrants.”