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Mugged: one a week on Woodhouse Moor

Students are ignoring safety messages and are paying the price according to statistics released by West Yorkshire Police.

Street robberies in the notorious Woodhouse Moor - also known as Hyde Park - remain rife and students are the main target.

Five people, three of them students, were targeted while walking through the park in January alone.

The victims were male, all in their 20s, and in most cases suffered punches to the face before mobile phones, wallets and bags were seized.

Crime in Hyde Park is relatively rare during daylight hours, but many students continue to risk walking through the park after dark, despite warnings from the police.

PC Carole Munsey, the Student Liaison Officer for the University, warned of the dangers of time saving by using the park as a short cut at night.

She said: Walking around the park takes only a few minutes and can prevent you from being targeted.

Robberies increase dramatically as the days become shorter, and the lack of public lighting in the park provides plenty of opportunity for criminals.

Two similar robberies occurred in November, as well as four in December, and more than 60 incidents of crime were reported in Hyde Park over the course of 2006.

A male student aged 21 and a recent victim of robbery in the park told Leeds Student this week: The threat of crime is a real problem when walking home through Hyde Park and it is horrible when it does happen. Students need to realise the risks they are taking.

Men are particularly at risk of being robbed. 69 per cent of crimes committed in the park in 2006 were against men and the police are keen for them to take better care.

Pc Munsey continued: Men are just as vulnerable, if not more vulnerable, than women – they must be just as aware as women of how to keep themselves keep safe.

The Street Offences Team, based in Belle Vue Road, deal with robberies and similar crimes in student areas and are keen to highlight the potential risks that students expose themselves to when not taking due care on their journey home.

The team also fear that the true levels of crime may be even higher than the statistics indicate. The police know, and have known for a long time, that not all crime is reported.

Pc Munsey continued: Take very simple precautions and you are far less likely to become a victim. If you are robbed, call the police as soon as possible.

Students increase the risk of becoming victims of robbery, often by inadvertently advertising iPods and talking or texting on mobile phones whilst walking through the park.

Police fear that by using them, students are less aware of the potential dangers and with their gadgets visible, they are more susceptible to being approached by robbers.

Similarly, students deciding to walk home through the park under the influence of alcohol may also be putting themselves at unnecessary risk.