Medellin Reports

[Nounce]

...At one point, I told the group I was going to walk back to the hotel (4 blocks) at 9 pm and they advised against it. I think I would have been fine, but what do I know. I'm always aware of my surroundings (even at home)..

That area is safe but. There is randomness in it which is what you didn't feel.

.. until you run out of luck. ....

[MarquisdeSade1]

"Some of us who live here see it differently. In any case, you have to trust your instincts. Also on a more practical level it doesn't make a lot of sense to me to spend money to come to a place that makes you uneasy and afraid of your own shadow. This story has made the rounds of the major American and European media outlets for the past couple of years. I know this because people up north and in Europe who know I live here send me links like the one in your post on a regular basis. Whenever I am traveling and I mention to someone that I live in Colombia, more often than not they ask me "is it safe?" My stock response is "it's a city of two million plus people so crime is a problem and you have to take precautions. " The real answer is of course that yes it is safe for some and no it is not safe for some others. ".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beuuMAvZvbM

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/23/w...es-deaths.html

A man in a flamingo-patterned shirt sits in front of a white lattice fence.

Steven Valdez, 31, at his home in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The travel blogger was drugged and robbed last year in Medellíand, Colombia, after meeting a date on Tinder. Credit. Erika P. Rodríguez for The New York Times.

A Hazard for Visitors to Colombia: 'Devil's Breath'.

Powerful sedatives are behind a spate of violent crimes, USA Officials say. Many victims are Americans in Medellíand who use dating apps.

Steven Valdez, 31, at his home in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The travel blogger was drugged and robbed last year in Medellíand, Colombia, after meeting a date on Tinder. Credit. Erika P. Rodríguez for The New York Times.

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86.

By Annie Correal and Genevieve Glatsky.

Annie Correal and Genevieve Glatsky reported from Bogotá.

Jan. 23,2024.

Updated 1:06 pm ET.

Leer en español.

Steven Valdez thought he recognized the woman in the Medellíand park. Chatting, the two realized they had matched on the dating platform Tinder. They exchanged numbers and made plans.

On their date last spring, he said the woman suggested that he try a typical Colombian dish — a creamy soup called ajiaco. She carried it from a restaurant counter to their table.

He had two spoonfuls, Mr. Valdez, 31, said. "And that's the last thing I remember. ".

Like scores of visitors to the Colombian city last year, Mr. Valdez, a travel blogger, said he was told at the hospital that he had ingested a powerful, potentially fatal cocktail of sedatives, including a drug called scopolamine.

Scopolamine makes its victims black out, and experts say it can also make them unusually open to suggestion — including agreeing to hand over a wallet or reveal passwords.

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American officials are so concerned that they issued a security alert this month about the sedatives and a wave of violent crime targeting visitors to Colombia, especially in the increasingly popular tourist destination of Medellíand, a city of 2. 6 million in a valley of the Andes Mountains.

Map locates the city of Medellíand in Colombia, as well as Bogota, the capital, south of Medellíand.

Caribbean Sea.

PANAMA.

VENEZUELA.

Medellíand.

Pacific.

Ocean.

Bogota.

Colombia.

Ecuador.

Brazil.

PERU.

200 MILES.

By The New York Times.

The USA Embassy, in a previous security alert, describes scopolamine as an "odorless, tasteless, memory-blocking substance used to incapacitate and rob unwary victims" and warns of using dating applications in Colombia or visiting nightclubs and bars.

Colombian officials say many of the incidents involve the city's sex industry.

"Unfortunately, due to word of mouth, people are identifying that in Medellíand there are pretty girls and you can party really hard at a very low cost," said Carlos Calle, who monitors the tourism industry for the city government. "Criminals are taking advantage of that. ".

ImageA man with a mustache and beard, wearing a black T-shirt, looks out a window. A residential neighborhood across the street can be seen in its reflection.

Carlos Calle monitors the tourism industry for the Medellíand city government. Credit. Federico Rios for The New York Times.

Since the pandemic, Medellíand has also drawn thousands of digital nomads seeking cultural immersion and a cheap Airbnb, and investigators and lawyers say that they, too, are being targeted on mainstream dating platforms like Tinder.

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Tinder did not respond to a request for comment.

While deaths are relatively rare, authorities in Medellíand said the number of robberies involving scopolamine and other sedatives has risen sharply in recent years, though the exact number is unknown, since many victims do not go to the police.

"There are people who feel too embarrassed because if they file a report, people will know what they were doing," said Manuel Villa Mejía, the city's security secretary.

Jorge Wilson Vélez, a forensic criminologist who works with victims and their families, said there were likely hundreds of victims last year.

Perpetrators see the robberies as a tax on tourists whom they view as wealthy and in Colombia to prey on women, Mr. Vélez said. The intent is not to kill anybody, he added. "They call it, 'giving the guys something to sleep. '.

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Last year, Medellíand saw 1. 4 million foreign visitors, nearly 40 percent of whom were American, according to city data.

Image.

People stand on a city sidewalk in front of a corner store situated under a billboard advertising beer.

Tourists in Medellíand's District 13. Credit. Federico Rios for The New York Times.

Crimes against American visitors have stirred fears in the expat community. An English-language Facebook group, Colombia Scopolamine Victims & Alerts, has about 3,800 members.

Americans are being hit, Mr. Vélez said, because they're going online "looking for company, a relationship," and especially when they go on dates alone.

Scopolamine, also known as "devil's breath," has been reported elsewhere in Latin America and beyond, with cases popping up from London to Bangkok.

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But the drug's rise in Colombia, and the embassy's warning to Americans, comes as a particular blow to a country trying hard to change its image.

Medellíand, in particular, has struggled to shed associations with drugs, violence and Pablo Escobar. The city has undergone a major transformation since the 1990's, boasting sleek museums, cafes on tree-lined streets, and the country's only metro system. While some criminal gangs remain, the city's homicide rates have plunged.

Crimes targeting tourists may tarnish that rosy picture — but so, too, do the tourists themselves, according to officials and lawyers who represent men targeted by thieves, who say some are treating Medellíand like a lurid playground.

"There's this weird mystique. You come to Medellíand, and the normal rules don't apply," said Alan Gongora, an American lawyer in Medellíand. "Like, anything is possible. '.

Some crime victims said they were just looking for a date.

Image.

A man looks at his mobile phone, his laptop open and perched on a bar in front of him.

Since the pandemic, Medellíand has drawn many digital nomads seeking cultural immersion and a cheap stay, and investigators and lawyers say that criminals are targeting them for robberies. Credit. Federico Rios for The New York Times.

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During the pandemic, Mr. Valdez left LOS Angeles, where he worked in television production, to travel and work on his blogs, including one called We Like Colombia. He was in Medellíand last May, working and taking bachata lessons, he said, when he opened Tinder to find a dance partner.

After his date with a woman who called herself Luisa, he said he woke up in his Airbnb, alone and unable to stand up. His right leg felt broken.

The police later told him his captors had beat him, likely because he had resisted being robbed, Mr. Valdez said. Hospital blood tests revealed the presence of scopolamine and another drug, clonazepam, a depressant.

He lost his phones, laptop, wallet and about $7,000, he said.

But he felt lucky to be alive.

Mr. Valdez reported the attack, and his date and several others were arrested after trying to use his bank cards to purchase appliances at a store, according to the police.

He tries to keep what happened in perspective. "I've been to Colombia, like, eight times now since the pandemic," said Mr. Valdez, who now lives in Puerto Rico. "I've seen organized crime is rampant because prices are going so high over there. You know, the regular citizens can't afford it. ".

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Criminal groups that lure victims through dating platforms are typically small, unaffiliated crews from poor neighborhoods, investigators in Medellíand said.

One 42-year-old man from New York recalled being drugged by a Tinder date who served him a rum and coke that he said knocked him out for 24 hours.

She stole his electronic devices, silver jewelry, a bank card and cash. "I thought I had lost everything," said the man, who asked to go by his initials, are. J. , to protect future job prospects. But his passport and IDs were right where he had hidden them. A police report viewed by The Times corroborated details of the crime.

Leaving a passport, investigators said, is a signature of these crimes — meant to encourage victims to leave without reporting the robbery or pressing charges.

Image.

An aerial view of a crowded hillscape in Medellíand, Colombia.

District 13, a neighborhood popular with visitors in Medellíand. The city received 1. 4 million tourists last year, nearly 40 percent from the United States. Credit. Federico Rios for The New York Times.

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Some thieves can be sophisticated.

In December, a young German scientist touring Latin America and posting videos under the name Dr. Travel said he was robbed in Medellíand by a woman he was "chatting with" after joining her and her friend for a meal.

He drank a pink soda, he said in a video, and later awoke to find his wallet and phone gone. His phone's tracking function was deactivated, his Apple ID password changed and his bank account drained. Holdings in several cryptocurrency exchanges were sold, the funds moved to other crypto wallets.

He lost more than $16,000, he said. Attempts to reach the man were unsuccessful.

Scopolamine has long been used to treat motion sickness and nausea, but became popular in larger doses around three decades ago as a recreational drug and to commit crimes, said Guillermo Castaño, a senior investigator for Colombia's science ministry.

Around 10 years ago, criminals in Colombia started using it to target tourists, Dr. Castaño said, often mixing it with benzodiazepines, depressants that typically treat insomnia and anxiety, to further incapacitate victims.

In a widely publicized case, Paul Nguyen, a 27-year-old from California, was fatally drugged by a Tinder date in Medellíand in late 2022, his body found near a dumpster. An autopsy determined he had been drugged with clonazepam, which, combined with alcohol, had caused his death.

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His date and several accomplices were arrested and are now on trial, tracked down with the help of a photo of the woman that Mr. Nguyen posted on Snapchat before he disappeared.

Image.

A woman in a white jacket stares down at her cellphone.

Paul Nguyen took a photo of his companion on a Tinder date in Medellíand during which the authorities said he was drugged with clonazepam.

Medellíand authorities have said stopping the attacks is a top priority. Four people were recently arrested in connection with the murder of another American tourist who may have met a date online.

Still, arrests are rare.

Mr. Nguyen's mother, Kimberly Dao, said the family had to hire Mr. Vélez, the investigator, to push the police to pursue the case.

For Ms. Dao, the USA Embassy alert about online dating in Colombia is a sign the issue is being taken seriously — though she wished it had come sooner.

If it had, she said, "I would beg him, I would not let him go. ".

[TraveLight]

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I am subscribed, at least I believe I am.

[Gabacho]

When I was in the hotel elevator, I said 'Hola' to the other person and he told me (sternly) "You don't speak Spanish to me". So there's an element that certainly hates tourists. Truth be told, I hate tourists in my town too, so I can't blame him.

This is exactly how I feel when someone tries to come up to me speaking English. Like I didn't spend the last catorce fucking años aprendiendo español for some arrogant smuck to insult my intelligence, estamos en Colombia & aqui hablamos español. That is my fucking opinion and if anyone does speak English to me I usually just fucking ignore them; they're lucky to get a "como, no entiendo digame en español" out of me these days.

Are there any typos or errors Huacho? I'm sitting on top of the washer machine as I type this so it doesn't shake to holy hell during the rinse cycle LOL.

-Gabacho.

[ElSexoChino7]

What places have you stayed, what were the pros and cons of those places? Feel free to PM, I'd love to compile the suggestions and perhaps make it into the "links to reports of distinction" thread.

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[MarquisdeSade1]

"Where did it say that he was a sex tourist?

Is there a subtle psychotic implication somewhere in there that it would be ok if we all kill ourselves? WTF.

[Turgid]

...... It's only some foreigners, and especially some posting online that say otherwise.......

Its called internet bravado. Anytime I read about some dude saying how brave he is and that he owns a gun and shit I just think that he is in reality probably the most coward and scardy cat person posting. Why would anyone volunteer info about his bravery on an anonymous board if not to escape reality?

[Knowledge]

The guy you met in the elevator sounds like a class A dickhead. Anyway, if you are back for another business trip and you can get away from your colleagues for two to three hours before dinner you would have time for a quick uber or taxi trip to a casa in Centro. It's very low risk and time efficient. I think it's a very good businessman's option.

I visited Medellin last week (work trip). I was hoping I'd get a few hours away from my colleagues, but I guess it was a team building trip, so we literally did everything together for 6 days. Anyway. . . Just a word or two about the area.

I stayed at a hotel in El Poblado area. A Marriot hotel. In my case, I needed to do something safe / nearby / discreet. From my perspective, the options were:

1. Jade Palace (probably a 15 min walk). Uber would be quite reasonable and well worth the price. It's hot. I don't recall the rates, but they were pretty cheap compared to the legit spas.

2. Rio Sur Mall (OM Spa for Men). Will be pricey. Expect to pay 500000 COP if you want a legit massage and full service.

3. I looked on Mileroticos.com and found plenty of escort options, but I was just too nervous to pull it off. My hotel had a security guard at the ground floor entrance. It would have felt funny to try to sneak an obvious escort in. It looks like some of the escorts host in the El Poblado area (Near the park in El Poblado (Calle 10)). I was just too nervous going into an apartment, alone.

My Columbian colleagues told me that it's safe, but if you look like you're a foreigner (which I do), you might be targeted to get robbed in the evening. They said that guys / gangs actively look for tourists leaving nice restaurants / hotels and following them. I was there for 6 days and we walked El Poblado a whole lot. Not once did I feel unsafe. . . . but. . . We were with Columbians and travelled in a large group. At one point, I told the group I was going to walk back to the hotel (4 blocks) at 9 pm and they advised against it. I think I would have been fine, but what do I know. I'm always aware of my surroundings (even at home).

When I was in the hotel elevator, I said 'Hola' to the other person and he told me (sternly) "You don't speak Spanish to me". So there's an element that certainly hates tourists. Truth be told, I hate tourists in my town too, so I can't blame him.

I 'm a little disappointed I didn't get to give it a try, but I wanted to contribute to the forum and thank those that took the time to help me.

[Knowledge]

This is a variation on the advertising that appears in every gringo in Medellin facebook group on a daily basis.

Hello everyone, I am from Medelland, I offer my services as a sexual tourist guide, I have great experience and knowledge of all the sites that provide sexual services, I have contacts with girls who work in the sector and also with local girls who can only be found through networks such as Facebook, dating houses, bars, websites, etc. , in addition to knowing how to hire the services of escorts without being scammed, prioritizing security and with the maximum benefit that guarantees that the girls comply with everything they offer, you can write to me by private message for more information about this or any other service I can offer, have a good night.

[Chicago85]

To you it's all in your hands until you run out of luck. Truth is that Colombia has very weak law enforcement and judicial systems thus criminals thrive. Medellin, though not the most dangerous city in the world, is much more dangerous than many other large cities. The locals will all tell you it is dangerous. It's only some foreigners, and especially some posting online that say otherwise.

P.S. Comparisons to cities like Chicago will always remain invalid as, for example murder stats in cities like that are inflated by gang violence in certain areas of town and are neither here nor there to expats and tourists.

The weak law enforcement was the biggest thing for me during the two crimes that I've been a victim of (apartment robing when out and then being drugged and robbed). I had information on the suspects and even some pics, but cops wouldn't do anything.

As someone from Chicago I also have to agree there. The situation is very unfortunate there, and safety unequal. The murder rate on the leafy Northside is 3 per 100,000 and then you have the West Side around Garfield Park and near South Side where it's 120+ per 100,000 . As dangerous as Tijuana.

[Camils]

Hello everyone, I am from Medellín, I offer my services as a sexual tourist guide, I have great experience and knowledge of all the sites that provide sexual services, I have contacts with girls who work in the sector and also with local girls who can only be found through networks such as Facebook, dating houses, bars, websites, etc, in addition to knowing how to hire the services of escorts without being scammed, prioritizing security and with the maximum benefit that guarantees that the girls comply with everything they offer, you can write to me by private message for more information about this or any other service I can offer, have a good night.

===============================================

Greetings,

Here's how to contact other forum members.

1. Buy a subscription.

2. Send them a Private Message.

http://www.internationalsexguide.nl/...=Subscriptions

Thanks,

Admin

[Michael Taylor]

I visited Medellin last week (work trip). I was hoping I'd get a few hours away from my colleagues, but I guess it was a team building trip, so we literally did everything together for 6 days. Anyway. . . Just a word or two about the area.

I stayed at a hotel in El Poblado area. A Marriot hotel. In my case, I needed to do something safe / nearby / discreet. From my perspective, the options were:

1. Jade Palace (probably a 15 min walk). Uber would be quite reasonable and well worth the price. It's hot. I don't recall the rates, but they were pretty cheap compared to the legit spas.

2. Rio Sur Mall (OM Spa for Men). Will be pricey. Expect to pay 500000 COP if you want a legit massage and full service.

3. I looked on Mileroticos.com and found plenty of escort options, but I was just too nervous to pull it off. My hotel had a security guard at the ground floor entrance. It would have felt funny to try to sneak an obvious escort in. It looks like some of the escorts host in the El Poblado area (Near the park in El Poblado (Calle 10)). I was just too nervous going into an apartment, alone.

My Columbian colleagues told me that it's safe, but if you look like you're a foreigner (which I do), you might be targeted to get robbed in the evening. They said that guys / gangs actively look for tourists leaving nice restaurants / hotels and following them. I was there for 6 days and we walked El Poblado a whole lot. Not once did I feel unsafe. . . . but. . . We were with Columbians and travelled in a large group. At one point, I told the group I was going to walk back to the hotel (4 blocks) at 9 pm and they advised against it. I think I would have been fine, but what do I know. I'm always aware of my surroundings (even at home).

When I was in the hotel elevator, I said 'Hola' to the other person and he told me (sternly) "You don't speak Spanish to me". So there's an element that certainly hates tourists. Truth be told, I hate tourists in my town too, so I can't blame him.

I 'm a little disappointed I didn't get to give it a try, but I wanted to contribute to the forum and thank those that took the time to help me.

[TraveLight]

Never happened to me yet. But I always make sure to build a relationship with the doorman and sometimes you can always tell or your gut instinct will let you know if something is up. Picking a good location with a lot of good reviews will always help.

I've yet to decide where to stay in my quickly approaching trip because I agonize over things such as these. I've been going into the archives here in my spare time and creating a list which, is short at the moment.

A couple that I've run across with previous mention here are: Orange Suites Medellin, Hotel Selis, and of course, The Mansion.

What places have you stayed, what were the pros and cons of those places? Feel free to PM, I'd love to compile the suggestions and perhaps make it into the "links to reports of distinction" thread.

The location I'm looking for is preferrably $100/ night or less, has a check in program, and not so close to the party that sleeping will be difficult.

One of you residents take me up on my offer of free beer, please (2/4-2/10). Thanks.

[MarquisdeSade1]

"I saw a couple of videos. People in the crowd were absolutely yelling at him to jump. I don't understand that mentality. ".

Maybe if he landed on someone yelling jump, that would discourage that from.

Happening in the future after people would also see that in the video.

[ElSexoChino7]

This is pretty solid advice. Be advised however that doormen can work for you or against you and it doesn't have so much to do with tipping. In other words, tipping can help improve service for things like food deliveries as well as protection from misbehaving visitors but, and this is a big but, you should never assume doormen would not get into cahoots with potential robbers. Trust me, it happens.

Never happened to me yet. But I always make sure to build a relationship with the doorman and sometimes you can always tell or your gut instinct will let you know if something is up. Picking a good location with a lot of good reviews will always help.