Stag Parties a target for Barcelona muggers

In a huge effort to combat petty crime in Barcelona, Catalonia's national police force, the Mossos d'Esquadra, has put an extra 800 officers on the beat in the city's worst mugging black spots to coincide with the first influx of summertime tourists.

"We get about 80 robbery victims in here each day," said a careworn officer. "East Europeans and North Africans seem to be the most frequently reported suspects."

"We are in trouble with the police for fighting back when we were robbed," said a young man from Leeds, waiting to file a report.

He said he was with a stag party when he and six friends were mugged in a side street of Las Ramblas esplanade. The thieves made off with about 700 euros.

When police asked if he or his fellow travellers wished to press charges, the man said it simply wasn't worth the trouble. All they wanted to do was to get back to the hotel and then go home.