The interior minister said Sunday that illegal immigrants could be blamed for a large share of the crimes committed in Italy, AP reported. Of the 611,000 people arrested or cited last year, 28 percent were «irregular immigrants,» suggesting a «very strong incidence» of clandestine immigration having an effect on crime, Interior Minister Giuseppe Pisanu said. By contrast, «the amount of crimes blamed on legal immigrants is practically irrelevant,» he said. Pisanu, whose ministry oversees the state police, did not say how many of the arrests led to convictions, which in Italy's slow-moving court system can take years to reach. Additionally, in crimes allegedly involving illegal immigrants, the foreign suspects are usually expelled from the country within weeks. Pisanu has been leading a crackdown on illegal migration in Italy, where thousands of people each year attempt to enter illegally, many by sea, in hopes of finding better economic opportunities within the 25-nation European Union. Italy also hopes stemming the illegal immigration will help anti-terrorism efforts, as investigators say international terrorist cells have used centers in Italy that produce or procure false documents. Italy has called for more cooperation between countries with Mediterranean coasts to discourage illegal immigrants from landing.
