Arrests of foreigners double in 3 years as migrant crime soars

Their figures show that in 2010 more than 91,234 non-British nationals were arrested over crimes including murder, burglary and sexual offences.

Only 51,899 foreigners were detained in 2008 – signalling a shocking increase of 76 per cent over three years.

The steep rise comes after a period of soaring migration, with more than a million coming here from 10 eastern European countries from 2004 to 2007.

The figures, released under the Freedom of Information Act, will trigger fresh outrage over the UK’s chaotic immigration policy, lax border controls and failure to deport convicted foreign criminals at the end of their sentences.

Politicians and campaigners described the figures as “deeply worrying” and called for action to address the problem which is causing a huge strain on police forces’ finances.

Hardest hit of the 19 forces that responded to the request were those policing largely rural areas. It is thought they have seen the biggest rises because they had few immigrants before EU enlargement but now host thousands of farm labourers.

Cambridgeshire Constabulary made 27 arrests of foreign nationals in 2006 and 4,803 in 2010 – a 17,689 per cent rise.

Durham Constabulary suffered a 629 per cent rise from 65 in 2006 to 474 in 2010. Humberside Police recorded a 138 per cent increase, from 865 to 2,055.

During the same period arrests by Kent Police increased 283 per cent from 1,075 to 4,119. Surrey Police saw a rise from 1,959 to 2,079 – up six per cent.

Fewer than half of forces released data, which means that across the UK the total number will be much higher.

If the average increase for the 19 forces included in the figures were applied across all 52 UK forces, it is estimated that more than 750,000 foreigners have been arrested since 2008.

Hugh Robertson, Conservative MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, said: “These figures are deeply concerning for anybody who lives in Kent and place a very unwelcome extra burden on our police forces.”

TaxPayers’ Alliance spokeswoman Charlotte Linacre said: “Savings could be made by removing red tape so it is less bureaucratic, simpler and cheaper for foreign criminals to be sent home.”

Nick Cowan, of think tank Civitas, said: “It would be nice if we could re-establish the ability to control our borders and deport people when they are incredibly undesirable.”

The shocking statistics show a steady increase in the foreign crime wave even in urban areas where immigrants have settled for years.

Arrests of foreigners by the Metropolitan Police increased from 24,264 in 2008 to 58,870 in 2010 – up 143 per cent.

Pete Smyth, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, said: “I’m not surprised it’s so high because London is getting more diverse by the day.”

A spokeswoman for the Association of Chief Police Officers said: “The growing number of new communities has certainly brought greater complexity to the pattern of crime and has contributed to already stretched resources.”

Julian Huppert, Lib Dem MP for Cambridge, said: “Our police force is extremely poorly funded and yet our officers are doing a good job against this background of poor investment – but it is crucial that this is addressed as a matter of urgency.”

The steep rise in foreigners arrested on suspicion of crimes comes despite an overall fall in the number of crimes recorded over the past five years.

In recent years there have been several high-profile outrages by foreigners.

These include hit-and-run Iraqi Aso Mohammed Ibrahi, 33 (see left); David Bieber, the US bouncer who shot dead PC Ian Broadhurst in Leeds in 2003 and Roberto Malasi, an Angolan who shot dead a woman at a christening party in Peckham, south-east London, in 2005, then knifed a pastor’s daughter.

In 2005 and Michal Pech, a Slovak army deserter, shot dead his former lover Clare Bernal at Harvey Nichols department store in London, before shooting himself.