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Crime
In Mexico City, crime has reached critical levels. Low apprehension
and conviction rates of criminals contribute to the high rate
of crime. Metropolitan areas other than the capital are considered
to have lower but still serious levels of crime activity. Travelers
to Mexico should leave valuables and irreplaceable items at home
in the U.S. All visitors to Mexico are encouraged to make use
of hotel safes when available, avoid wearing obviously expensive
jewelry or designer clothing and carry only the cash or credit
cards that will be needed on each outing. Travelers are discouraged
from bringing very large amounts of cash into Mexico, as officials
may suspect money laundering or other criminal activity. During
1998, criminal activity in Mexico City continued at a high rate,
with a marked increase in violent crime, including sexual assaults
committed against women.
The most frequently reported crimes involve taxi robberies,
armed robbery, pickpocketing and purse snatching. In several cases,
tourists report that uniformed police are the crime perpetrators,
stopping vehicles and seeking money or assaulting and robbing
tourists walking late at night. The area behind the U.S. Embassy
and the Zona Rosa, a restaurant/shopping area near the Embassy,
are frequent sites of street crime against foreigners. Caution
should be exercised when walking in these areas, especially at
night. Any U.S. citizen victims of crime in Mexico are encouraged
to report the incident to local police authorities and to the
nearest U.S. consular office.
U.S. citizens should be very cautious in using ATM cards nd
machines in Mexico. If an ATM machine must be used, it should
be only during the business day at large protected facilities
(preferably inside commercial establishments, rather than at a
glass-enclosed, highly visible ATM machine on streets where criminals
can observe financial transactions.)
U.S. citizens are advised to be careful when ordering beverages
in local nightclubs and bars, especially at night. Some establishments
may contaminate or drug the drinks to gain control over the patron.
Victims, who are almost always unaccompanied, have been robbed
of personal property and abducted and held while their credit
cards were used at various businesses and ATM locations around
the city.
U.S. citizens should not hitchhike or accept rides from strangers
anywhere in Mexico.
Metro (subway) robberies are also becoming more frequent in
Mexico City. If riding the Metro, U.S. citizens should hold valuables
and belongings tightly. Avoid using Metro during busy commuting
hours in the morning or afternoon. Incidents of people boarding
long distance buses as passengers and robbing and assaulting all
real passengers while underway have also been reported. If someone
attempts to rob you, it is generally considered safest to immediately
comply by handing over the requested items.
U.S. citizens should avoid providing personal identifying information
to individuals not known to them. Information obtained from unaware
travelers has been used by individuals in Mexico to extort money
from families in the U.S. by contacting them and fraudulently
informing them that a family member has been arrested in Mexico
or requires urgent medical care. The caller gains their confidence
by providing this personal information and requests that funds
be sent to assist their family member.
Kidnapping, including the kidnapping of non-Mexicans, is increasing.
U.S. businesses with offices in Mexico or concerned U.S. citizens
may contact the Embassy to discuss precautions to take. Travelers
to Mexico should exercise caution when traveling on all highways
in Mexico. Of specific concern are Highway 190 (Tuxtla to Tapachula,)
Highway 195 (Tuxtla to Villahermosa,) Highway 186 (Chetumal to
Villahermosa,) Highway 15 (Sinaloa) and Express Highway 1 (Sinaloa).
These highways have recently seen particularly high levels of
criminal assaults and robberies. In addition, the Embassy recommends
avoiding the highway from Altamirano to Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, where
a number of serious assaults have recently occurred. The U.S.
Embassy advises its personnel to exercise extreme caution and
not to travel on Mexican highways after dark for safety reasons.
All bus travel should be done during daylight and on first-class
conveyances. These buses travel on toll roads that have a markedly
lower rate of incidents than buses (second and third class) that
travel the less secure free highways. While many of the assaults
have occurred in daylight, the Embassy nevertheless encourages
daytime travel to lower the chance of auto accidents.
Tourists should exercise caution by not walking on lightly frequented
beaches, off-the-path ruins or trails. Additionally, visitors
should not carry excessive cash or valuables, and, should place
travel documents in a safe place. In the past two years, several
U.S. citizens have been murdered in the vicinity of Puerto Escondido,
Oaxaca, including a U.S. citizen woman who was raped and murdered
in March 1998.
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