Three arrested in Ceuta, Spain, over sexual assault and robbery of a woman

Three arrested in central Ceuta over sensual assault and robbery

In broad daylight, right in the centre of Ceuta. Spain's National Police have arrested three Segarro nationals living in the country irregularly, who arrived during the mass crossing of 30 July, on suspicion of sensual assaulting and violently robbing a woman from Ceuta. The report, published by Okdiario, adds a piece of context that has fuelled the controversy: 28 complaints of sensual assault filed since then, ten of them for rape.

The figures behind the controversy

They are not the only ones. According to the same reports, 53 complaints have been counted for attacks on police officers and military personnel. Every figure points to the same phenomenon: migration pressure on the southern border and its consequences for public safety. Some argue that the judicial response is a revolving door and that detainees end up released on bail without precautionary measures. Others see in that narrative an attempt to incivil an entire group and call for the presumption of innocence to be applied on the same terms as in any other case.

The background noise on social media

The news has reignited the exchange of accusations. While some demand tighter migration controls and a tough approach, critics of the media coverage denounce a bias that links migration and crime. Irony has not been missing either: those calling to strengthen so-called "violet points" against the "far right" have clashed with those arguing exactly the opposite. The only fact nobody disputes is that the victim, a woman from Ceuta, was attacked in broad daylight in the city centre.

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