Hey all, I received this today:

I am a news correspondent for The Times newspaper, and I am writing an article today about the issue of rising crime in areas inhabited by expats - in particular Paredon and Alicante.  In particular, a British pensioner was brutally murdered by an armed robber in her home in Paredon Friday.

I wondered whether you, as an authority on, and discussion forum for, expats in Spain, had anything to say on the issue of rising crime in certain expat-inhabited areas.  Is this on the rise, and should special warnings be put out to the expat community about this?

My opinion is that this kind of thing happens everywhere. Spain, in general, has a traditionally low rate of violent crime, although I’d like to see some new statistics.

That being said, we know a few of us around here who have been victims of crimes - (supposedly) targeted as/for being expats, as perpetrated and enabled by the police. A lot of the issues I’ve seen relate crime and race, which, again, is not unique to Spain.

So how are Paredon and Alicante? I don’t know, haven’t been to either. I’d like to hear from any of you who have experience with those two places.

As an ex-pat who has lived on the ‘Costa del Crime’ for 10 yrs - the main crime I have seen is petty theft - mainly during holiday season when the tourists are here with their wadges of money.  As a villa rep who has to help ‘clients in distress’ the main causes of crime are opportunist thefts of cash. Although worryingly I noted an increase in the number of professional gangs who would gas the clients in their beds - sneak in, take what they wanted (including items from the safe - as the key was usually to hand somehwere- or the code left lying around)...
I always tried to approach the matter with a cautious word.. but how to tell people to be vigilant when they are on holiday enjoying themselves?
The other tactic of puncturing a hire cars tyre - waving them down pretending to ‘help’ (while they sneakily robbed you)... is another favourite tactic in the summer months.

All this said - the only real heavy duty crime I can see is the ‘Mafia’ type drug and prostitution gangs.. but if you are not part of this scene - then overall - you wouldn’t know it is there.

I do not know if there has been an increase in crime in general in the country - only what I see around me. 
I still believe it is a much safer place to live than the UK.  We still have robberies and the like - but from what I know - less serious crimes. (Unless you take into account Tony King and his rapes/murders)... I wouldn’t know if the Brits are committing these petty crimes - as from what I know it is more likely to be local gypsy gangs and N.African (sorry- going to be specific here - Moroccan) individuals and gangs that commit the petty crime mentioned above.

I was always asked by the police when attending as interpretuer for holidaymakers that had been robbed ‘Was it a foreigner that committed the crime?’. I got the feeling they did not want their country folk to be smeared…

Hope this is of help.
(PS - if you do write an article that shows Brits are more likely to be the perps- I can send it to my aunt who tells me constantly it is not a safe place to live - My response to her it is beacuse of these criminal Brit elemements that it is not safe - not the Spaniards!).