Chinese students in Birmingham, UK, warned over violent muggings

Chinese students in the central UK town of Birmingham have been warned to be on their guard against violent robbery after a series of incidents in recent weeks.

In a letter dated earlier this week, the University of Birmingham advised students to stay safe and report any incident to the school.

One male student was attacked and badly injured on Monday in the Selly Oak district of the city, and was taken to hospital with head injuries.

"We understand this has caused a certain amount of distress," said the letter after Monday's incident, when four suspects robbed and attacked the Chinese male student on his way to his dormitory.

University staff visited the student and he has been helped whilst he recovers, the letter said.

"We are working closely with West Midlands Police, who have arrested a suspect in connection with the incident," Deborah Walker, the university's spokeswoman, said in a written response to media inquiries.

She added the attack was an isolated incident, and the university has already met with the Chinese Embassy and Chinese Scholars Association to assure them of a high priority for student safety.

"There has been hearsay of robberies and theft before, but nothing has ever come as close as recently," Yang Zidan, a sophomore of University of Birmingham, told China Daily.

In a shaky voice, the 21-year-old recalled her own recent experiences of being followed and an attempted break-in. "My roommate and I are now too scared to go out alone."

She said safety wasn't a concern until lately when new Chinese students arrived for language courses ahead of starting their main degree studies.

"People may be starting to realize newly-arrived Chinese students tend to have a lot of cash at hand and their English is not very good," said Yang, giving her theory about the crimes.

Police said no pattern of specific attacks on Chinese students had been found, but detectives are looking into the incidents, a member of the West Midlands Police department press office said in response to media enquiries on Thursday.

Officials in charge of the language course have spent time visiting classes to provide reassurance and to listen to students' concerns, the University of Birmingham said in the letter.

It urged students to report any incidents to police "as soon as possible", while reminding them it is illegal in the UK for anyone to carry knives or other weapons, even in self-defense.

To contact the reporter: daitian@chinadaily.com.cn