Rome in October - Refugee concerns

You will not be at risk on public transportation. Why do you think refugees will be a risk, linking them with crime??
I would not walk along the Tiber at night, many homeless are encamped on the riverbanks.

I believe Suki means do not walk down on the river banks after dark. Walking on the streets that follow the Tiber is fine. Also, I have walked on the river banks of the TIber many times in daylight. It's safe. Lots of people jog and ride bikes there, share a bottle of wine, etc.

Equating refugees with crime makes no sense at all. Many, including me, would view it as an irresponsible statement.

Forget the refugees - you'd best spend your time looking out for pickpockets who call Rome home.

^^^ What Tim, and all the others have said. Equating refugees with criminals is not OK. Better to watch out for pickpockets ( and no, you can't tell by just their looks).

http://www.abcnews.com/International/wireStory/italy-police-nab-refugee-suspect-beach-gang-rape-49594064
News like these make people afraid. I believe you should be safe from violent crime on public transport. But as Tim says, watch for pickpockets.

Foreign immigrants (legal and illegal) constitute approximately 10% of the population in Italy and they do commit a disproportionate amount of crimes in Italy, but so far very few, if any, of them are part of the recent wave of refugees.

For example the perpetrators of the gang rape to a Polish couple on vacation in Rimini, which was in the front pages of Italian papers this last week, was committed by 2 Moroccan minors, 1 Congolese, 1 Nigerian, but all of them are long time residents of Italy.

These are the crime statistics for percentage of crimes committed by all foreign nationals in 2015: In parenthesis the percentage committed by foreign nationals:

Murder (26%)
Attempted Murder (33%)
Assault with bodily injury (32%)
Forcible purse snatching (44%)
Pickpocketing with skill (65%)
Home burglary/theft (54%)
Store burglary/theft (58%)
Home armed robberies (50%)
Bank armed robberies (5%)
Post office armed robberies (12%)
Store armed robberies (40%)
Street armed robberies/mugging (49%)

(Source: Italian Ministry of the Interior - 2015 data)

I'd like to add to the statistics above, that the violent ones (murder, mugging, armed robberies, etc.) are very rare in Italy, and even decreasing in number over the years, so the chance of being involved in any violent incident are as close to zero as you can get.

However non violent petty crime, especially pickpocketing, is a crime that happens at increasing frequent rates. You should be cautious about that and take precautions, especially if you plan to use public transportation (buses, subways). That is where 90% of those pickpockets happen, especially during crowded peak commute times, and the victims are local commuters and tourists alike.

Walking anywhere in the city center of Rome is safe. I wouldn't walk down the banks of the Tiber river at night (above at street level is ok). Below is where many homeless people live, so not a pleasant place to be at night.

Roberto, the article says that the Congolese rapist came to Italy in 2015 and his bid for asylum was rejected. So that doesn't look like long time resident of Italy. Maybe the others.

It may be irresponsible or worse but if it is the perception, it will carry much more weight and crediablilty than the truth.

Thank you for your responses. We have traveled to Europe many times over the years and except for minor crimes, i.e. pickpockets, we have never had a concern for our personal safety. That being said, we have spoken to some locals in areas of Germany and other locales where it appears serious crime has been on the rise recently. We just wanted to be prepared for what to expect in Rome. Thank you, again!

Ilja you are correct. The Congolese (Mr. Butungu), the only gang member over 18, was an asylum seeker arrived in 2015. The two Moroccan brothers (15 and 17) were actually born in Italy from foreign migrants, but not yet Italian citizens according to Italian law. No specific news on the other minor member of the gang (some papers say Nigerian others Congolese). All of them residents of Pesaro, not far south of Rimini.

While many violent crimes are decreasing in Italy, sexual assault is on the rise. Most are committed by individuals within the same circle of friends as the victim. 60% are committed by Italians, 40% by foreign nationals. Also in this case, since foreign nationals are only 10% of the population, they disproportionately commit these crimes. That is not going to get better. Out of the 600,000+ Wave of migrants entering Italy from North Africa since 2011) over 80% are males between the age of 16 and 30. Since Italian (or generally European) women are largely educated and unwilling to consensually date these individuals who are largely unskilled and uneducated, it is only natural that there might be a rise of this type of crimes.