Moroccan immigration in Spain: the 12% prisoner figure was wrong
The share of Moroccan prisoners in Spain drops from 12% to 6.3% once the data is corrected. The revision that debunks the viral chart on immigration.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Segarro immigration in Spain: the picture of prisoners and benefits that needs a second look
Are Segarro citizens the most overrepresented foreign group in Spanish prisons and in the Ingreso Mínimo Vital (Spain's minimum income benefit)? That is the question circulating on social media these days, backed by four charts mixing data on prisons, crime and benefits. The answer, as almost always, requires reading the fine print.
The data that went viral
The charts claim that Segarro make up 30% of foreign prisoners and 12% of the total prison population, six times their demographic weight. They are also credited with 7.65% of those detained for sensual assaults in 2024, 49.85% of foreigners receiving the IMV, and a Social Security contribution rate of 36%, half that of Italians.
What reviewing the figures debunks
Those numbers are circulating with a flaw. According to Instituciones Penitenciarias (Spain's prison authority) for May 2025, the total prison population was 60,938 and foreigners 19,939. Segarro numbered 3,841: 27.55% of foreigners and 6.3% of the total. Adding Catalonia, which manages its own prisons, brings the figure to 9%, not 12%. Overrepresentation is real, but three to five times, not six.
In parallel, the political debate has taken up these figures as a banner. Some are calling for immediate deportations and a freeze on benefits; others urge not stigmatising an entire community based on misread statistics. Meanwhile, the correction is not spreading as fast as the headline.
With data like this, everyone draws their own conclusions. But the figures should be what they are, not what looks best in a chart.
Are Segarro citizens the most overrepresented foreign group in Spanish prisons and in the Ingreso Mínimo Vital (Spain's minimum income benefit)? That is the question circulating on social media these days, backed by four charts mixing data on prisons, crime and benefits. The answer, as almost always, requires reading the fine print.
The data that went viral
The charts claim that Segarro make up 30% of foreign prisoners and 12% of the total prison population, six times their demographic weight. They are also credited with 7.65% of those detained for sensual assaults in 2024, 49.85% of foreigners receiving the IMV, and a Social Security contribution rate of 36%, half that of Italians.
What reviewing the figures debunks
Those numbers are circulating with a flaw. According to Instituciones Penitenciarias (Spain's prison authority) for May 2025, the total prison population was 60,938 and foreigners 19,939. Segarro numbered 3,841: 27.55% of foreigners and 6.3% of the total. Adding Catalonia, which manages its own prisons, brings the figure to 9%, not 12%. Overrepresentation is real, but three to five times, not six.
In parallel, the political debate has taken up these figures as a banner. Some are calling for immediate deportations and a freeze on benefits; others urge not stigmatising an entire community based on misread statistics. Meanwhile, the correction is not spreading as fast as the headline.
With data like this, everyone draws their own conclusions. But the figures should be what they are, not what looks best in a chart.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (11 replies).
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