# Crime In Mexico



## expat1111

A lot of people hear that crime in Mexico is so bad and the killings happen all the time! This drives me crazy!!!!! After 5 years living here I would say it is one of the safest place I have ever lived. Maybe in some border towns there is crime but how about Miami. Sometimes when people here Mexico they lump the whole country into one like it is one big city. I live in Puerto Vallarta and it is 20 hours drive from Cancun and another 20 the other direction to Tijuana. Small crimes are present here but far less than anywhere. CNN and the news should be shot for reporting the way they do. In Puerto Vallarta I can walk down any street at any time, even 3 AM and never have a problem. I could not even do that when I lived in Key West. It is safer here than almost all large cities in the US. My wife and I love living the dream in paradise!!!


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## conorkilleen

expat1111 said:


> A lot of people hear that crime in Mexico is so bad and the killings happen all the time! This drives me crazy!!!!! After 5 years living here I would say it is one of the safest place I have ever lived. Maybe in some border towns there is crime but how about Miami. Sometimes when people here Mexico they lump the whole country into one like it is one big city. I live in Puerto Vallarta and it is 20 hours drive from Cancun and another 20 the other direction to Tijuana. Small crimes are present here but far less than anywhere. CNN and the news should be shot for reporting the way they do. In Puerto Vallarta I can walk down any street at any time, even 3 AM and never have a problem. I could not even do that when I lived in Key West. It is safer here than almost all large cities in the US. My wife and I love living the dream in paradise!!!


Same argument that's getting old. Acapulco is not on the border an neither Tepic


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## conklinwh

I hate to keep referencing but there is a very good article on Borderland Beat that was op ed piece on Houston newspaper by a person that has been actively tracking for two years. Very interesting discussion about what is going on and that there is really "two wars", one against the cartels and one against street crime.


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## conorkilleen

Yes. I am on there 5-6 times a day. They get their news from up to 12 different sources. I like them an they report well. It's not the only source for news on the "wars" but it's good enough.

The thing about the 2 wars....once one decreases from victories the other will escalate.

If the OP is so convinced by his own opinions, I would encourage him to google the numerous websites that I can't mention to open up his eyes and gain some knowledge about realities about Mexico outside of the "vacation spots" and the bubble life.

I've have studied and educated myself about the war for 5 years, 4 years before I moved here. Now living here I can understand better and take the nessisary precautions.

If the OP thinks the US media is bad, he really needs to check out the other 95% that IS reported on sites like BLB or BDN in Mexico. Oops

I'll stay in my bubble and you guys can stay in yours.


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## expat1111

*More than half the country*

So many cities that are wonderful not on the border but the news and the Governments still put travel advisories on the entire country, what a joke. Thank for the reply





conorkilleen said:


> Same argument that's getting old. Acapulco is not on the border an neither Tepic


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## conorkilleen

expat1111 said:


> So many cities that are wonderful not on the border but the news and the Governments still put travel advisories on the entire country, what a joke. Thank for the reply


I agree 100% with that. But I don't think the travel advisories turn people away. It's the violence that does. Google Mexico violence in English and look what comes up. We are an Internet centric world now and the Internet is the news for many US people. But if you google Violencia en Mexico, then you get a different perspective.

I work and travel freely in Mexico and all of Latin America for the last 8 years. Mexico is pretty serious compared to other countries, but I take the same precautions everywhere. Sao Paulo, Bogota, Rio, Panama, Lima,DF, Buenos Aries, Santiago, ect ect. I live here with my family so I am a little more sensitive than most. Pardon me for being weary.


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## expat1111

*Crime in US*

Try walking down a downtown street in Miami at late night, there is a good chance of being mugged but I do not hear about any crime advisory.

Also I beg to differ, The news does keep travelers from coming to Mexico




conorkilleen said:


> I agree 100% with that. But I don't think the travel advisories turn people away. It's the violence that does. Google Mexico violence in English and look what comes up. We are an Internet centric world now and the Internet is the news for many US people. But if you google Violencia en Mexico, then you get a different perspective.
> 
> I work and travel freely in Mexico and all of Latin America for the last 8 years. Mexico is pretty serious compared to other countries, but I take the same precautions everywhere. Sao Paulo, Bogota, Rio, Panama, Lima,DF, Buenos Aries, Santiago, ect ect. I live here with my family so I am a little more sensitive than most. Pardon me for being weary.


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## FHBOY

*Not Yet There/Bubble Living*

Since I am not yet living in Mexico, my opinions on this are worth what you pay for them, nothing. That being said, we have had a similar discussion before and I think we can agree that the media needs material, the crime problem is where you find it and if you use common street smarts, like here in the states, it will avoid you, and you can avoid it.

I will check out that website, but even now, with all the bad publicity, we are not deterred. Having lived in NYC, Phila, Baltimore, Miami, and having some street smarts, I think I can be just as safe, if not more, in my soon to be small "bubble" community of Ajijic.

The discussion on "bubble" living is something I hope we'all can pursue, or has been pursued, but in our case, we look forward to it...the relative safety of the "bubble' and, once learned, the way to journey out of it to the other experiences of the adventure, like archeology history, culture and such.

Oh, and yes, I agree with the OP, I felt very, very safe in PV even at fetivals or walking out at night, but my Spider Sense told me that there are places even in PV I would not want to go at night by myself - then again there are places in Baltimore I wouldn't want to go either!


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## conklinwh

Looking at the two "wars". I think that street crime, although on the rise, is still less than almost any US city of similar size. As pointed out earlier with pressure on the cartels, this will probably get worse and question is can the local police groups keep up. I don't think that this is having any effect on tourism.
What I'm convinced is having an effect is the cartel war and especially the shear violence. In the US, we have a certain view of violence in terms of horrific shootings or stabbings. However we really don't understand just how violent crime and even punishment is in the rest of the world. Mexico is probably the closest that this level of violence has come to the US. I grew up around NYC when there was "family" warfare but that consisted mostly of shootings and sleeping with the fishes. I never heard of severed heads being rolled onto dance floors, bodies hanging from bridges or people being skinned alive.
As much as we want to say that this really cartel/cartel or cartel/government crime, the horrific nature is almost all encompassing. I'm very comfortable where I live but still take precautions. However, a lot of people that haven't seen all the good things about Mexico will take a pass. BTW, I wish just the border. With the splintering of the cartels, there is a lot more focus on countrywide drug routes and especially ports of entry.
BTW, somebody pointed out that tourism had been the 3rd largest source of money in Mexico after oil and remittances. With remittances down if I wanted to topple the government or get my people elected, increasing violence to reduce tourism is not a bad gambit.
We can preach to the choir, give all our point stories but this will not have much influence when someone is looking at Mexico. Until there is a reduction in violence, there will be an impact.


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## pappabee

As has been said before, a lot about safety is what you make of it. Take the very simple precautions and everything should be fine. 

Many years ago (about 1969) I was staying at Three Rivers Hilton in Pittsburgh PA. After a very long day of listening to speeches and being involved with discussion groups I decided to take a walk. I went out the front door of the hotel and made a left and just started to walk. I was about a block away when three police cars surrounded me. I was asked what I was doing in the neighborhood and when I told them that I was staying at the hotel and was just out for a walk I was told that a 'white boy' was not safe in this neighborhood. They put me into a police car and took me back to the hotel. In 1969 there were neighborhoods so close to a major hotel that were unsafe for a 'white boy' I wonder what they'd be like today.

Today I feel that I can walk anywhere in Ajijic with complete safety. What a wonderful place my wife and I have found to retire.


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## conklinwh

As I said, I don't think street crime the issue, but rather the shear violence of the cartel activities. I doubt heads were rolled into your hotel in Pittsburgh as a warning. I've lived in and around big cities all over the world for some 50+ years and there are things that I do and don't do. BTW, NYC, at least mid-town is a lot safer now than the late 60's/70's before Giuliani with Bryant Park the poster child.
Also as I said, no matter how many "point" stories that you, I or anyone else gives, until the violence subsides it will have an effect on those not committed to being here.


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## pappabee

conklinwh said:


> As I said, I don't think street crime the issue, but rather the shear violence of the cartel activities. I doubt heads were rolled into your hotel in Pittsburgh as a warning. I've lived in and around big cities all over the world for some 50+ years and there are things that I do and don't do. BTW, NYC, at least mid-town is a lot safer now than the late 60's/70's before Giuliani with Bryant Park the poster child.
> Also as I said, no matter how many "point" stories that you, I or anyone else gives, until the violence subsides it will have an effect on those not committed to being here.


Negitives of any form will have an effect on those who are still questioning an action. That is just 'human nature'. In many of those cases what they are really asking is for someone to give them a reason NOT to do something. 

Atremus Ward who was the editor of The Cleveland Plain Dealer for many years used to say "Don't confuse me with facts I've already made up my mind".


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## m55vette

In the last week in Reno NV 4 shootings and 4 stabbings. Where is the national media outrage? Even the local outrage? On the news, business owners and police had a press conference to tell us downtown was safer than it ever was. This info does not include the burglaries, home invasions and armed robberies also taking place. And I didn't include the domestic violence as that is contained to people familiar with each other. I guess it is easier to point fingers elsewhere than it is to fix your own problems.


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## conklinwh

I don't really think it's a discussion of facts but rather emotion and inertia. A body at rest will tend to stay at rest, etc. In order for someone to move they must perceive the value to be greater in net than staying where they are. Actually needs to be enough increased value to overcome the inertial force of not moving. For some people, this inertial staying force is relatively small and for others quite large.


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## Gupi

I agree that inertia plays a role. That's one reason to consider renting rather than buying, so you can leave somewhat more easily if necessary.

I live in Mérida, which is growing. Other Mexicans are moving here, possibly because it's seen as being a safe city. For example, I met one student whose parents pulled her out of college in Monterrey due to the violence and sent her here to finish her degree. 

However, the official statistics about safety here are so good as to be unbelievable (e.g. "only one drug-related death last year"? In a city of almost a million?). At least one violent home invasion in Mérida was never reported in the news, as far as I could tell. 

So while US media definitely over-focus on gruesomeness, there may also be some denial happening here, especially with the current administration pushing the tag line "City of Peace." 

At the same time, it *is* a safe city -- I'm comfortable walking alone at night in most neighborhoods, and I rarely hear about crimes.

I think the best way to learn about safety in a Mexican city is to live there, get to know locals, and keep your ears open.


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## pappabee

It seems to me that we've beat the Crime/Safety thing to death enough in this and many other threads.

I'd say it's time to put it out of our misery and let it drop. Those of us who are happy here will probably remain happy and those of us who are not, will probably never change their minds.


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## Tr0phy_Scars

I'm very happy where I stay at in San Luis Rio Colorado, right off the border and no problems with drugs or cartels or any major crimes. 

Surprisingly, I thought I would be in the middle of the drugs wars along the border, but I guess they don't care about Arizona. Guess need to go down more east or south to experience the bad Mexico.


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## telcoman

And then there is this:

NOGALES, AZ - If you have ever wished to see the Arizona Mexican border, but thought it was not safe, or you heard too many bad things, there is now a company giving guided tours.

ABC 15 went along for the ride that is being called an honest look at life on the border.

The “Border Crisis: Fact and Fiction” bus tour takes riders to various locations in and around Nogales, Arizona.

From commonly frequented border crosser emergency water supplies, to a ranch where the owners deal with the immigrants on a weekly basis, riders experience a wide range of border life.

The promotional pamphlet from the Gray Line Tours encourages people to “take your own fact-finding mission on the U.S.-Mexico border.”

The organizers insist that there is no political agenda on the tour. “Don’t let the politicians and news broadcasters become your only source of information,” the pamphlet adds.

"Instead of having to learn about the border from people outside of the border, the border is going to speak to you itself today," tour guide Bob Feinman tells riders.

Emmett Smelser and his wife Carol came to see from themselves if what they see on TV and read in the paper is true about Arizona's controversial border. Much of what they hear is negative: drug cartels, kidnappings, murders, and headless bodies are just some.

"The national media are full of stories [about the border], as well as the local media,” Emmett said. “I know there is a lot that gets reported, as well as a lot that doesn't get reported. I want to get the facts."

Rancher Dan Bell tells the tour group about how he and his family have lived on the border for three generations.

"The problem is you never know what you're going to come across when you're out here,” Bell said. “You don't know if you're going to be coming across somebody who's just simply looking for work, or if it's somebody who's doing criminal activity."

Tourists get to see the rebuilding of the border fence in Nogales, as well as the border check points where thousands of Mexicans and Americans travel back and forth every day.

Rider Lynne Pickett said she is glad she took the tour. Until the trip, she says for a long time she was too scared to travel to the border.

"After this, I'm going back," Pickett said. “I’m not afraid anymore. I have seen a lot of difference down there. It was totally eye opening."

Gray Line Tours of Tucson partnered with Humane Borders and the Santa Cruz Community Foundation on the all day excursion. The trips are currently offered twice a month, or upon request for large groups. The cost is $75 per person, which does include lunch from a restaurant on the Mexican side of the border.

For more information, contact Gray Line Tours of Tucson at 520-622-8811.

See New tours show the Arizona-Mexican border


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## HolyMole

telcoman said:


> And then there is this:
> 
> NOGALES, AZ - If you have ever wished to see the Arizona Mexican border, but thought it was not safe, or you heard too many bad things, there is now a company giving guided tours........


Sounds a little like the bus tours that brought white tourists into Soweto when apartheid was still in force.


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## HolyMole

expat1111 said:


> So many cities that are wonderful not on the border but the news and the Governments still put travel advisories on the entire country, what a joke. Thank for the reply


Quote:
Originally Posted by conorkilleen View Post
Same argument that's getting old. Acapulco is not on the border an neither Tepic

I'm beating a dead horse, but:

expat1111, you misunderstood conorkillen's point - Tepic and Acapulco are many miles away from any borders, but have experienced narco-violence as vicious and shocking as any experienced in the border cities.


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## telcoman

This editorial was posted on another forum. No references so I cannot attest to its accuracy.



A year ago when Hillary Clinton, The Chairman of of Joint Chiefs of Staff, An operations rep of the CIA, the NSA, and FBI (including the elite HRT) visited Mexico City, I knew that something big was afoot. What they did is manage to set up an elite counterintelligence network that uses orbiting satellites to identify and pinpoint cellular telephone conversations, sat phones and even landlines to process through the NSA supercomputers. Not only do they identify voiceprints, telephone numbers and cell tower usage, they analyze the information and compile almost instant dossiers about not only cartel jefes, but their sicarios, halcones and everyone else that communicates. Birds have been launched and predator (unarmed) drones are in Mexico mapping virtually every square inch of territory used by the cartels.

The results are astounding. Cartel leaders have been falling like tenpins, and hundreds upon hundreds of sicarios and halcones have been arrested. TelCel is now commonly chopping off cellular service to areas with firefights ongoing which utterly blinds cartel jefes and sicarios. If they cannot communicate, halcones cannot telephone and report on the location and intent of roving SSP and militar patrols.

I have serious grudge with the USA ATF organization and that truly embarrassing episode where they sent a massive shipment of guns to Mexico and "lost them" reinforced my view that the ATF should be eliminated or reorganized from the top down. A prime directive of the ATF should be to intercept firearms and ammunition going to Mexico and impose a mandatory 40-year no time off no-parole sentence, in a federal pen for violators. Another thing they can do is to salt 9mm and 7.62mm ammunition with C-4, and send it to Mexico. It will blow up a firearm to shreds and there is no way to tell salted ammo from ordinary stuff.

The military has taken control of every police department in the state of Tamaulipas, so the zetas are finally on the run.

The Mexican military and police have had their hands full learning on an almost vertical curve. There are fewer and fewer cases (I did not say little or none) of major corruption, and these guys are learning as they go.

Mexico has a long row to hoe when it comes to reforming their local cops and their entire judiciary. But it is happening, and the rate of change and improvement is ACCELERATING, sometimes by leaps and bounds.

I have read so much doom and gloom crap from the USA and so-called expats that it makes me ill. I live in Mexico and see stuff every day. Changes cannot be done overnight. But the tide has changed folks. The drug cartels are on the run, and it is only going to get hotter for them. Someone put up a hell of a bounty for the clowns who ambushed the two CPB agents in San Luis Potosi, and guess what, members of a rival cartel captured them and delivered them on a silver platter. The word is, the cartel did this unilaterally because the heat was "incredible".

La Familia is and was the only cartel to recognize that they could not prey on the public or suffer retribution intense enough to cause a lot of damage. But they kill cops and military, and hope that somehow they will be placed on a lower rung of the ladder to be eliminated. Fat Chance.

So take heart. The War on criminality in Mexico was never in danger of being lost. But all of the cartels are losing top echelon personnel by the dozens, daily. It's going to take years to really put a lid on some of this activity especially in the cities.

Sorry to report that the state of Tamaulipas is still too hot to travel in. The military has arrested no fewer than 300 TOP zetas in the last two weeks there and this has really thrown a monkey wrench in the level of crimes committed.

I just want Mexico to become peaceful. My friends and neighbors did not deserve this crap.

Thank You!


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## conorkilleen

Good article. Thanks for posting. I enjoyed reading it!

Information seems to be correct, but who can tell for sure. I think both Mexico and the US media either tell half-truths or don't report at all. From other blogs and dated reports it does seem that the action is having some positive results, but nobody knows for sure the vast amounts of Cartel members and "TOPS" there are. If Mexico Military keeps splintering the networks of the cartels its going to get messy for a while, but at least its progress. Keep in mind these are not just local gangs, but worldwide organizations in some respects. 

I do have one question, not to answer unless you want, but to ponder in the next few months and years to come: If the cells get splintered down so far that the cartels are really disbanded, then what options for jobs or work are there for the "jobless" ex-cartel employees? Can they become honest productive members of society? IMHO, I don't think so. Imagine the bag boy at the Soriana once was lopping off heads and holding an AK-47 all hopped up on the Devils Dandruff...scary thought.

I love Mexico and it was MY choice to move here. I am an Ex-pat though my own choice. Not "The Man" transferring me here against my will. As I have said in my previous posts, I will never pretend to be naive about the situation and say it does not affect me. If you plan to retire here and spend the rest of your life as I do, then it does in fact affect you. Next year, the year after, so on and so on....what happens everyday here in Mexico has a positive or negative affect on all of our futures.....not just immediate hour by hour.


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## telcoman

I spend about 5 months a year in Mexico & drive from the border there & back each time. I have experienced no trouble, although I am far more aware of what is happening around me than I am in the US. I started a new web site (Mexico RV Travel Buddies) this year (free) to try & help people match themselves up with other travelers, RV or Car or both for more security on the road.


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## DennyDaddy

Telcoman

Living on and off in Mexico, yes it does affect us, but things will get better, sooner or so. I was responding to a post about travel here in Mexico. I drive to and from the border all the time, always the drive is on our mind, and said we feel safe, but!

Today in an automatic car wash in RP, was talking to a Mexican family who is here from down south on vacation. The Mexican wife said they were stopped by a fake police stop, said they looked in car and let them drive on.

I asked for details as I will be driving that route soon to the border in a few days.

She said they know it was a cartel related or such, as the vehicles were just plan old rigs and the police uniforms had no ID.

I asked why they let you go.. They said they want newer SUV's and did not want their 2 wheel drive Volkswagen.

They said if... They had what they wanted they would at first plant some drugs, and say they will inpound the vehicle. So give it to them or get shot, is what those Mexican tourists from Mexico basically said......

Said mainly the newer black windowed newer 4wd SUV's is target.

So, will this stop us from coming here, hell no, but things like that will always be on ya mind. Will we run across a fake check point, hope not, but will give them my rig if it keeps me from getting plastered. 

They said if ya run the check point, they will shoot! I asked if they were robbed, as they drove a newer car and looked well to do...they said no, 

So I guess don't drive a newer, big SUV, on the roads to/from the border, as this they said, happened in Sonora. 

But, asked how it affected them, will they sill vacation, and travel, as now more Mexicans are vacationing to the major resorts. The Mexican wife said no, they may never run into a fake police check point again, as fate would have it! But will still road travel. 

This is just as I always say,,, FYI and can't colaberate their story as true or false, but they seemed to of been reliable.

DD


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## conorkilleen

Ok....so this did not happen in the US?


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## DennyDaddy

conorkilleen said:


> Ok....so this did not happen in the US?


Hi ....

No, not in the US. They were coming around the Sea of Cortez Baha, around mainland south to RP to finish the vacation trip, before heading south. 

They did not seem very concerned, they were just glad they did not have the big 4 w/d SUV or real expensive car that is the norm, or what they want! 

I been coming here since '89 and the only time I had any crime, was 4 bags of cement stolen in the middle of the night up front, for my front low wall.

After the wall was finished, never had any more problems.... Even still leave construction material out in the yard still, but lugging a heavy cement bag now over the wall....I say let them have it it's worth the effort. They may need it more than me if they go thru that!

But I learned, ya just can't use a reg padlock on any doors or shed or anything cause I think all carry heavy bolt cutters at night.

I had my welder make special steel lock protectors where I have to insert the key up where they can not get bolt cutters.
Some of my ****** friends had their pump house broken into with bolt cutters, and house gates.

I got the idear from a round lock combo I seen at Home Depot!

Since we leave for days or so at a time, I noticed that the paint was chipped by the lock protector. It looked like they attempted a time or two, to get in. It also alarmed, as they shut off street elec breaker to the house. But it has a battery back up! 

It's just life here in Mexico......but the two north roads into here are heavy traveled by tourists but things can happen.

As your question this did not happen in the US, but about 4 years ago out at county road 17th and 3E, in Yuma, my wife had a attempted kidnap while walking the road in the orchard area streets, she is small and looks like a teenager from a distant! She ran to a house after a couple attempts...

So, of it's your turn.......

DD


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## conklinwh

I know that we are somewhere between preaching to the choir and beating a dead horse but I thought the blog posted by Telcoman was very good. It has a lot of consistency with Op Ed article printed in Houston newspaper that that was posted on Borderland Beat by person that has spent the last few years interviewing people on both sides of the border.
Personally, I especially hope that the military activities in Tamaulipas stabilize the Ciudad Victoria to Matamoros/Valle Hermoso as that my preferred route to Texas.


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## gringotim

My uncle has lived in Manzanillo for almost 10 years, and last summer was the first time he was a victim of crime, but it didn't happen in Mexico, it happened when he came to BC for a visit, he parked his rental car at WalMart in Langford (near Victoria) for about 30 minutes, durring that time the window was smashed and all that was taken was a $10 pair of sunglasses, whats ironic is it was the same pair of sunglasses he had accidentaly left on a bench outside the WalMart in Manzanillo for 45 minutes, and when he went back to see if they were still there, guess what, they were, and it was a weekend with lots of young kids and teenagers coming in and out of the store. Need I say more?


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## telcoman

There was an article in the Vancouver paper this morning about a Canadian woman stabbed to death in her home in San Miguel (robbery). It also mentioned that 15 Canadians have been killed (did not say murdered, just killed, but lets assume it means murdered) in Mexico since 2006. I looked up the stats and in that same period 5.5 million Canadians visited Mexico. Of course most are 1 or 2 week package deals. So if you take 10 days as an average & do the math it works out to about 1 per 100,000 on an annual basis. i suspect that figure is not much more than the figure for Canada itself. I decided to try & find out what the death rate was for Canadian visitors to the US. I googled it and guess what? All I get is articles on murders of Canadians in MEXICO. That tells me that the media is only interested in playing up deaths of Canadians in Mexico and playing down those in the US. You don't piss off your largest trading partner.


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## carlb

Overweight, pastie white snowbirds, wearing speedo's or thong bikini's, now thats a crime!


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## telcoman

Actually I found this: More Canadian tourists are murdered in the US than in Mexico!!!! At least for the time range reported.

Related

Speak Out: Foreign killings

More than 250 Canadians have been slain abroad in the past seven years, documents obtained by the Toronto Star show.

The cases are spread across the globe, with the majority occurring in the United States and sunny vacation destinations such as Mexico, Dominican Republic and Jamaica, according to information released by Canada's foreign affairs department under access to information legislation. Many of the cases remain open without any charges. The United States tops the list with at least 56 killings. Mexico and Caribbean countries come second with a combined total of at least 47 in the 2000-2006 time period. Killings in Central American countries, India, China, Russia, the Philippines, Thailand and elsewhere round out the list.


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## carlb

telcoman said:


> There was an article in the Vancouver paper this morning about a Canadian woman stabbed to death in her home in San Miguel (robbery). It also mentioned that 15 Canadians have been killed (did not say murdered, just killed, but lets assume it means murdered) in Mexico since 2006. I looked up the stats and in that same period 5.5 million Canadians visited Mexico. Of course most are 1 or 2 week package deals. So if you take 10 days as an average & do the math it works out to about 1 per 100,000 on an annual basis. i suspect that figure is not much more than the figure for Canada itself. I decided to try & find out what the death rate was for Canadian visitors to the US. I googled it and guess what? All I get is articles on murders of Canadians in MEXICO. That tells me that the media is only interested in playing up deaths of Canadians in Mexico and playing down those in the US. You don't piss off your largest trading partner.


I found 56 Canadians murdered in the US in from 2000-2006, but nothing for recent years.


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## telcoman

Obviously you found the same link I did.


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## carlb

telcoman said:


> Obviously you found the same link I did.


Looks like it, looking at the times we both posted that info, we must have been doing it at the same time.


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## HolyMole

Anyone heard/read anything on the recent report (in the LA TIMES) that some authorities in Texas were advising Americans not to travel through Nuevo Laredo this holiday weekend because the Zetas reportedly have threatened to specifically target US citizens there?

Some may suggest this was a ploy by Texas business to "keep our dollars at home", but it would definitely be news if there was any truth to it.


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## conklinwh

I had heard the same thing but not sure of the source. It wasn't US Govt as last warning 22 April. I did find two articles including Hispanic Times that said warning came from Texas Dept. of Public Safety and the Webb County Sheriff's office that the had credible threats against Americans by the Zetas if they crossed into Nuevo Laredo for the 4th. Threats included robberies, carjackings, kidnapping, etc.


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## conklinwh

This is for Alanmexicali or anyone else living in San Luis Potosi. Some 80%+ of tourists to Pozos are Mexican Tourists with quite a number from San Luis Potosi. This has increased recently and I asked the dual language manager of one of our local hotels if he knew why.
What he was getting from the SLP visitors is that things so bad there that they were afraid to go out at night and that most places closed before dark. Therefore they felt much more comfortable leaving SLP for weekends.
I have a visit to SLP centro high on my list. Is something hsappening in SLP?


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## pappabee

Here's the actual quote:

"According to the information we have received, the Zetas are planning a possible surge in criminal activity, such as robberies, extortions, car-jackings and vehicle theft, specifically against U.S. citizens," said Steven McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, in a press release.

What a way to cut down on travel and insure more dollars are spent in Texas. Gov. Perry must be very happy. (don't like the man and afraid that he'll become president on day soon)


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## AlanMexicali

*Slp*



conklinwh said:


> This is for Alanmexicali or anyone else living in San Luis Potosi. Some 80%+ of tourists to Pozos are Mexican Tourists with quite a number from San Luis Potosi. This has increased recently and I asked the dual language manager of one of our local hotels if he knew why.
> What he was getting from the SLP visitors is that things so bad there that they were afraid to go out at night and that most places closed before dark. Therefore they felt much more comfortable leaving SLP for weekends.
> I have a visit to SLP centro high on my list. Is something hsappening in SLP?


I am in Mexicali and San Diego the past two months. As far as I know there has been some violence since last year in the La Huastecas area of the state which is a 6 hour drive from SLP. My wife is working full time in SLP and will be here on Fri. morning for a couple weeks. She has not mentioned any problems at all. Most places close there at 9 PM and if the gangs are getting more active on the street level in some areas it probably would not be any worse than Tijuana. There some areas it is hard to feel safe late at night, but by no means in El Centro or Zona Turista. For that matter any large blvd. or shopping area.

The tranquility of SLP the last three years I go there was noticeable and possibly they are not used to the news reporting many incidences of crime in the past and now it is more common, is the only thing I can think of.

The residents freak out when it is 85 degrees and sunny and complain continuously about it is SOOOO hot today. I might think they are spoiled and are having a hard time adjusting to change. They will get adjusted as Mexicali was a tranquil sleepy border city of 650,000 20 years ago and now look at it. Federal Police caravans driving fast through the streets all the time with sirens and lights flashing. Military also. We get used to seeing them all in ski masks, machine guns and swat gear, even at the Oxxos, no big deal. Crime is down there to an all time low in the past 6 years. I don't walk around some neighborhoods at 1 or 2 AM either, but do in my middle class area at least until 3 AM when the clubs close.

SLP has not many Federal Police that I saw but has very many State Police and many Military dressed the same as the Federal Police in Mexicali everywhere, especially in El Centro and Zona Hotelaria.


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## conklinwh

You are right about the reaction. I'm amazed how many Escalades, Mercedes, BMW's have disappeared into garages with the same people now driving Volkswagons.


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## AlanMexicali

*Reaction*



conklinwh said:


> You are right about the reaction. I'm amazed how many Escalades, Mercedes, BMW's have disappeared into garages with the same people now driving Volkswagons.



In 2006 I was coming back from picking up my friend and going to El Centro in Mexicali one Saturday at noon and 8 minutes before at a Pemex beside the 2nd. largest mall in Mexicali two punks [people grabbed them right there 18 and 19 year olds] point blank walked up to a ex Secretary of State of Baja and killed him getting out of his white Escalade. Police in 8 minutes had the place surrounded and about 500 people were stand outside the Pemex already. Two weeks later we went to a carne asada and stayed overnight at her nieces who's husband was the Jefe de Policia de Otay , a part of Tijuana. Six weeks after the carne asada he, the Sub Jefe, and a Baja Secretatia de Estado [female] had turned off a blvd. to take her to a convention and gunmen filled his police truck with 250 bullets and all were killed.


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## HolyMole

conklinwh said:


> You are right about the reaction. I'm amazed how many Escalades, Mercedes, BMW's have disappeared into garages with the same people now driving Volkswagons.


It doesn't have to be an Escalade or a Mercedes. Check out Borderland Beat and scroll down to "I feel this story should be heard" for a chilling account of a home invasion in the same area where we spend ( possibly used to spend) our winters.
Note also the comment from the US Consul in Ixtapa concerning 4 carjackings of Americans in one week on the major Highway 200 close to Ixtapa.


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## conklinwh

I just read the article as well as that of some of the successes of the military along the border. There have been a few articles recently, one on this site and one on Borderland Beat, that talked about one of the expected outcomes of the increasing success of the military against cartel leaders was an increase in "street" crime. The concern is that this is being left to the police structure to handle and they may not be up to the task. As the writer said, the attack was horrendous but the inability of the support structure to respond as expected was equally bad. BTW, first thing I would do is look at the bank account and home of the security guard. Would expect either a large deposit or some high end goods.
As more and more pressure is put on the top, they will shift operations to somewhere less stressful but they won't move the soldiers. As somebody said, don't expect cartel soldiers left behind to suddenly decide that they want to bag groceries.


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## Tucson

We have owned in Mexico for almost 7 years with no bad experiences to report but we have noticed a few changes lately. 

One is that, while in Mexico, we do not read anything in the USA Today Caribbean edition about the drug/crime problems and we have heard that reporters are being murdered. That would certainly impact the interest and ability of reporters to get related stories out there in the press. 

Another personal observation is the presence of large truck convoys of fully uniformed federal troops coming into our gated resort communities for what seems to be some sort of maneuvers. We saw them walking around the marina with their rifles drawn, certainly on the look out. We've also seen them at the airport recently (usually in the black SUV's) and, in addition to the combat-ready personnel, there'd also be a lot of investigative types there, too. 

During a conversation with a friend and long-time Mexican national, he shared some thoughts with us. He said that it was pretty much a well-known fact that some of the drug kingpins owned homes in our community (where he lives, too) and they enforced the prohibition on drug traficking in this, their community where they live. Our friend also said he and his family moved here to the Yucatan from Mexico City to escape the crime which prevented his children from playing or going outside at all. He also said some Playa del Carmen merchants (foreigners) closed up shop when extortionists tell them that they know where their wives and children are; so pay protection money or else. Most leave the country to return home.

I plan on visiting the Borderland Beat website in an attempt to become more informed about the happenings in Mexico, north and south. Hopefully, there are Mexican reporters who continue to report on what is happening under the surface of our paradise.


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## DNP

I can only comment on the journalists being killed. It's horrible, and you're right: "It does impact the interest and ability of reporters to get related stories out there in the press." In that light, another reason we don't hear more about it is, in my opinion, because it's not a new story, so seldom makes the headlines. I read more about it in background-type pieces, things that journalists in the U.S. and other countries write about once every 3-6 months in sweeping articles. Newspapers in the U.S. and around the world, even "the media", are struggling with falling revenues; many have closed down altogether. Journals have been laid off in droves. And what little coverage is left is routinely bashed on the right and the left. We should all be concerned. 



Tucson said:


> We have owned in Mexico for almost 7 years with no bad experiences to report but we have noticed a few changes lately.
> 
> One is that, while in Mexico, we do not read anything in the USA Today Caribbean edition about the drug/crime problems and we have heard that reporters are being murdered. That would certainly impact the interest and ability of reporters to get related stories out there in the press.
> 
> Another personal observation is the presence of large truck convoys of fully uniformed federal troops coming into our gated resort communities for what seems to be some sort of maneuvers. We saw them walking around the marina with their rifles drawn, certainly on the look out. We've also seen them at the airport recently (usually in the black SUV's) and, in addition to the combat-ready personnel, there'd also be a lot of investigative types there, too.
> 
> During a conversation with a friend and long-time Mexican national, he shared some thoughts with us. He said that it was pretty much a well-known fact that some of the drug kingpins owned homes in our community (where he lives, too) and they enforced the prohibition on drug traficking in this, their community where they live. Our friend also said he and his family moved here to the Yucatan from Mexico City to escape the crime which prevented his children from playing or going outside at all. He also said some Playa del Carmen merchants (foreigners) closed up shop when extortionists tell them that they know where their wives and children are; so pay protection money or else. Most leave the country to return home.
> 
> I plan on visiting the Borderland Beat website in an attempt to become more informed about the happenings in Mexico, north and south. Hopefully, there are Mexican reporters who continue to report on what is happening under the surface of our paradise.


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