Crime, Safety, and the Police

[MemoeNasty]

As long as the security guards and your friend is safe F It.

I lived at Leyva for 3 years. Nice staff and decent digs for the zona but the only thing secure is that you WILL BE paying your rent on time and they might stop a girl from going upstairs if they are on the ball. Otherwise it is every man for themselves.

Another issue is thugs hanging out in front. One group of 3 with a baby stopped unexpectedly in front of the garage and the girl went to the office or so it seemed BUT it was a set up to make me think the 2 guys were waiting on her. What it was was a bogus run to the front desk to ask a fake question making me think she was staying at the hotel and meanwhile these two guys were sizing me up when I supposedly let my guard down. I sensed it immediately and maneuvered myself to the other entrance to wait for my guest. They were pissed off.

I'll never stay at Leyva again. 4 or 5 years ago they said my room at checkout only had 1 towel. They wouldn't give me my deposit back saying all rooms at check in have 2 towels. I had no luggage or anything. Just used to crash there when drunk. Said maybe my lady took the towel. I told him I had no lady visitor. Went back and forth to no avail. Place is a joke and rates have gone way up in recent years.

[Dogers69]

It's Mexico. I have read news articles same thing only they show up at the house demand you sell it in three days hand over all the money. Seriously. It's why a lot people rent in Tijuana. I know a few that can only rent for this reason.

[Artisttyp]

A monger amigo of mine and many others often stays at Posada de Santiago (formerly Hotel Leyva). He was there (maybe last night) & parked his big pick-up truck in the parking lot there. A ratero with a gun went into the lot and threatened PDS security at 2 or 3 in the morning and left with my monger friend's truck.

As long as the security guards and your friend is safe F It.

I lived at Leyva for 3 years. Nice staff and decent digs for the zona but the only thing secure is that you WILL BE paying your rent on time and they might stop a girl from going upstairs if they are on the ball. Otherwise it is every man for themselves.

Another issue is thugs hanging out in front. One group of 3 with a baby stopped unexpectedly in front of the garage and the girl went to the office or so it seemed BUT it was a set up to make me think the 2 guys were waiting on her. What it was was a bogus run to the front desk to ask a fake question making me think she was staying at the hotel and meanwhile these two guys were sizing me up when I supposedly let my guard down. I sensed it immediately and maneuvered myself to the other entrance to wait for my guest. They were pissed off.

[Hargow20]

Wow that is bold and crazy. This simply another reason why I avoid driving in Tijuana.

A monger amigo of mine and many others often stays at Posada de Santiago (formerly Hotel Leyva). He was there (maybe last night) & parked his big pick-up truck in the parking lot there. A ratero with a gun went into the lot and threatened PDS security at 2 or 3 in the morning and left with my monger friend's truck.

[ScatManDoo]

A monger amigo of mine and many others often stays at Posada de Santiago (formerly Hotel Leyva). He was there (maybe last night) & parked his big pick-up truck in the parking lot there. A ratero with a gun went into the lot and threatened PDS security at 2 or 3 in the morning and left with my monger friend's truck.

[LuvMexicanas]

I am in the Zona this week and here are a few observations. There is a guy about 5'10 in his 50's posing as a cop who tried to extort money from me. As I was walking up the hill on Constitution, he claimed I crossed while the don't walk sign was on. He flashed a badge and said we can settle this here or go to the station. I asked him why he is speaking English and he claimed I was giving him attitude. I saw some real cops and said let's go talk to them and he finally backed off and said I could go.

[LovesToSploog]

I frequent going to a town near the city of Iguala Guerrero (place where the 43 students went missing) could be that the checkpoint was set up by the town vigilantes and they are usually on edge with strangers since Guerrero is infested with cartels due to the drug trade. Could be a case where the town folk felt they were associated with a cartel or the check point could even have been set up by a cartel, nonetheless there's a reason why the USA explicitly states Do Not Travel in that part of Mexico. Outside the resort area of Acapulco, there is a war going on since there are opium fields and rich resources, I doubt it had to solely because of the car, you have to be there to know what has happen as a result of the drug wars.

"A Utah couple that failed to stop at a police checkpoint in Mexico were ordered to get out of their car and were fatally shot execution-style in front of their 12-year-old son, according to reports.

Paul Nielsen, 52, and Janeth Vzquez, 43, and their son, Kevin, were traveling from Acapulco to a beach resort when they were killed as they drove through Petatlan last Thursday at 3.30 A. M, according to local news outlets.

Some local reports claimed that community police associated with the checkpoint which is located in the town of Petatlan in the state of Guerrero -- shot the family. Some reports referred only to armed gunmen.

When they reportedly failed to stop at the checkpoint, they were ordered to stop, get out of the car, and shot in the head at close range. The shooters then took their car and left. . . "

https://www.foxnews.com/world/utah-c...ion-checkpoint

Wonder what kind of car they were driving? One the locals felt was worth killing for, like a 4 x 4 jeep? What kind of car are you driving to Mexico?

[Travv]

"A Utah couple that failed to stop at a police checkpoint in Mexico were ordered to get out of their car and were fatally shot execution-style in front of their 12-year-old son, according to reports.

Paul Nielsen, 52, and Janeth Vázquez, 43, and their son, Kevin, were traveling from Acapulco to a beach resort when they were killed as they drove through Petatlan last Thursday at 3.30 A. M, according to local news outlets.

Some local reports claimed that community police associated with the checkpoint – which is located in the town of Petatlan in the state of Guerrero -- shot the family. Some reports referred only to armed gunmen.

When they reportedly failed to stop at the checkpoint, they were ordered to stop, get out of the car, and shot in the head at close range. The shooters then took their car and left. . . "

https://www.foxnews.com/world/utah-c...ion-checkpoint

Wonder what kind of car they were driving? One the locals felt was worth killing for, like a 4 x 4 jeep? What kind of car are you driving to Mexico?

[ClamSlammer]

Planning on taking a little day trip down to zona norte sometime.

Next month. I'm going down with a friend. I'm black and my friend is chinese. We're obviously going to stick out like sore thumbs.

We plan on making it into Tijuana by 1-2 pm, thinking about checking out HK and NBelite spa.

Are we going to run into some trouble? Both of us don't habla.

Yes, you will kind of stick out on both sides of the border. Black guy and Chinese guy together. Don't know if you guys will run into additional scrutiny by Tijuana cops or CBP coming back. Tijuana cops will find any excuse to detain and search for a mordida, uhhh, I mean drugs. Forget about NBelite. Overpriced and it sucks. At 2 pm HK will be the only game in town. Probably won't run into trouble. Just maybe the cops. Just don't talk to any males on the street. And don't let the meseros talk you into anything.

[WombatEd2]

thinking about checking out HK and NBelite spa.

I don't know much about NBelite, but I can answer with respect to HK.

I'm black and my friend is chinese. We're obviously going to stick out like sore thumbs.

Not so much. I see Black and Asian guys in HK all the time. They sometimes even talk to each other. (grin).

Are we going to run into some trouble?

What kind of trouble are you worried about? As long as you stay in the area around HK, and don't get too drunk, and are reasonably respectful towards everyone, you should do fine.

Both of us don't habla.

In HK, most of the waiters and the girls speak enough English to get the job done. But be sure to have something like Google Translate on your smartphone.

When are you going? Maybe you can connect with some of the regulars.

[ActionJacks220]

Planning on taking a little day trip down to zona norte sometime.

Next month. I'm going down with a friend. I'm black and my friend is chinese. We're obviously going to stick out like sore thumbs.

We plan on making it into Tijuana by 1-2 pm, thinking about checking out HK and NBelite spa.

Are we going to run into some trouble? Both of us don't habla.

[Hargow20]

Before the gang members had a agreement to avoid fighting in the tourist areas. But apparently they no longer care. Hopefully this trend does not spread to the Zona.

MEXICO is experiencing its worst ever murder rate with 94 killings each day amid a massive surge in violence between cartels.

The number of homicides has rocketed over the past four years with more than 3,000 people slaughtered in June alone and over 17,000 in the first six months of this year.

If the current trend continues 2019 will beat the previous year's record of 33,341 murders, which was 33 per cent more than three years ago. Crime levels are so dire the government has called the army in.

Compare this to the total recorded last year in the UK, which has half Mexico's population but only has 726 murder victims. In Cancun alone there was 540 murders last year which shot up from 205 killings in 2017 . . . ".

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/944606...ings-each-day/

Might want to avoid Cancun this year.

[ScatManDoo]

Do we have a similar press for Tijuana? It's difficult to use a generalization as a safety guide for the Zona Norte.

I believe I googled "Murder rate in Tijuana", and this article from March popped-up up: https://www.kqed.org/news/11735361/i...-homicide-rate.

Excerpts from the article are as follows:

Article Title: In Tijuana, Police Grapple With World's Worst Homicide Rate.

"The conflict zone starts here," said Rodrguez, on an evening patrol in mid-March. "This whole area: Snchez Taboada, Reforma, Camino Verde. This is where the killings happen. ".

Tijuana was declared the most violent city in the world this month, by Mexico's Citizens' Council for Public Safety and Criminal Justice, which lists the Top 50 cities with the highest number of homicides per capita.

At the core of the violence is the drug trade, and the fight for turf.

State and local police investigate a murder in Tijuana on March 10,2019. Drug gang rivalries led to more than 2. 500 homicides last year, making Tijuana the murder capital of the world. (Tyche Hendricks / KQED).

As dusk fell on the steep hills and canyons of Tijuana, a unit of the Baja California State Preventive Police cruised through one of the city's toughest neighborhoods, in the south-central part of the city.

In a bulletproof vest with a small icon of a skull on the chest, Officer Manuel Martnez drove down a gritty avenue in the first of the unit's two reinforced pickup trucks. His partner, Officer Alfredo Rodrguez, conferred with a dispatcher over the crackling radio. Then he gestured out the window at the side streets.

"The conflict zone starts here," said Rodrguez, on an evening patrol in mid-March. "This whole area: Snchez Taboada, Reforma, Camino Verde. This is where the killings happen."

Tijuana was declared the most violent city in the world this month, by Mexico's Citizens' Council for Public Safety and Criminal Justice, which lists the Top 50 cities with the highest number of homicides per capita.

This fast-growing border city suffered 2,519 homicides in 2018. That's 40 percent more than in 2017, which was already a record-breaking year. And it's almost three times as many killings as in the worst previous spike of violence Tijuana suffered between 2008 and 2010.

At the core of the violence is the drug trade, and the fight for turf.

That's the war we have now, where drug dealers are killing each other over street corners.'

Officer Alfredo Rodrguez, Baja California State Preventive Police.

Over the past dozen years, organized crime groups such as the Sinaloa Cartel and the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generaciand have vied for control of Tijuana, making alliances with remaining factions of the once-dominant Arellano-Flix Cartel, and then fragmenting, re-forming and battling each other, according to police and criminal justice experts.

"There's a mix now: There are Michoacanos allied with Sinaloenses, and Guadalajaras with Sinaloenses," said Rodrguez. "They're fighting with each other and fighting amongst themselves."

Situated on the border with the United States, Tijuana has always been a prize for smugglers. But in the past decade or so, a new market has emerged.

"There are two lucrative sources," said Rodrguez, as the truck bounced up a rutted street. "One is to control the plaza (marketplace for drugs), to cross drugs to the United States. And the other is the local market. ".

'When the bosses are fighting each other and the big powerful mafia-type organizations are at war, it's not clear who's in charge at the street level. So you see more low-level criminal actors running around and fighting each other, literally for street corners.'

Professor David Shirk, an expert on criminal justice in Mexico.

In distressed neighborhoods like Snchez Taboada, drug dealers can make a fortune selling crystal meth on street corners, out of mom-and-pop convenience stores, and the parking lots behind local bars, he said.

"In just one Tijuana neighborhood there are 30 or 40 points of sale, and they produce $30,000 or $40,000 a day. That's just in one neighborhood, and there are hundreds all over the city," said Rodrguez. "So that's the war we have now, where drug dealers are killing each other over street corners."

[Rebel Monger]

MEXICO is experiencing its worst ever murder rate with 94 killings each day amid a massive surge in violence between cartels.

The number of homicides has rocketed over the past four years with more than 3,000 people slaughtered in June alone and over 17,000 in the first six months of this year.

If the current trend continues 2019 will beat the previous year's record of 33,341 murders, which was 33 per cent more than three years ago. Crime levels are so dire the government has called the army in.

Compare this to the total recorded last year in the UK, which has half Mexico's population but only has 726 murder victims. In Cancun alone there was 540 murders last year which shot up from 205 killings in 2017 . . . ".

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/944606...ings-each-day/

Might want to avoid Cancun this year.

Any tourist among the murdered?

[Jackie888]

MEXICO is experiencing its worst ever murder rate with 94 killings each day amid a massive surge in violence between cartels.

The number of homicides has rocketed over the past four years with more than 3,000 people slaughtered in June alone and over 17,000 in the first six months of this year.

If the current trend continues 2019 will beat the previous year's record of 33,341 murders, which was 33 per cent more than three years ago. Crime levels are so dire the government has called the army in.

Compare this to the total recorded last year in the UK, which has half Mexico's population but only has 726 murder victims. In Cancun alone there was 540 murders last year which shot up from 205 killings in 2017 . . . ".

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/944606...ings-each-day/

Might want to avoid Cancun this year.

Do we have a similar press for Tijuana? It's difficult to use a generalization as a safety guide for the Zona Norte.