Crime, Safety, and the Police

The crime fluctuates a lot in Tijuana. The cartels are out of control in Tijuana. We saw last year on of the cartels told everyone to stay home.

I agree that straying to far from the zona is riskyThis especially true heading west & north of the zona. I am hoping the national guard will investigate crimes or at least have. Dept. That does so. Currently the national guard is there to only stop crime & violence. People in Tijuana have told me that they only impound drugs when they find them on people.

Also wondering what news site you look at?

[QUOTE=Sol12;2935476]I didn't say it happens daily. I said "almost daily" which means that it happens often especially lately I have noticed an increase. I look at the Tijuana news every day so if you want to see for yourself what I mean you are welcome to look for yourself. Just going back to this girl was shot on Thursday I think, the guy that Baxter mentioned was shot on Friday then two more guys were shot on Sunday. So it happens much more often than you realize.

Also the Zona Norte is not just the block with HK and the alley. Once you get away from that part it's a very very dangerous area because of all the drugs and criminals. So just because you don't see or read about people getting killed in the part of Zona Norte you visit doesn't mean it's not happening in the rest of the area.

I don't have much faith in Sheinbaum but I look forward to Papa Bear coming back to take control of the police with the new Tijuana mayor.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Hargow20;2935571] I am hoping the national guard will investigate crimes or at least have. Dept. That does so. Currently the national guard is there to only stop crime & violence. People in Tijuana have told me that they only impound drugs when they find them on people.

Also wondering what news site you look at?[/QUOTE]IMO the GN is a problem in Tijuana and it's not the job of soldiers to police a city. The police need to take back control of the city and winning the trust back of the people. This is why the former police chief is coming back and this is his philosophy. Hopefully he will be successful like before.

I follow the two main papers in Tijuana. [URL]https://www.elimparcial.com/tijuana/[/URL] and [URL]https://zetatijuana.com/.[/URL] Zeta is especially good at more in depth investigative journalism. Also sometimes you can find more in depth articles or better information of certain news items from some of the other sites. I don't want to list them all but if you search " noticias Tijuana" you will see some other sites that have good info. Especially [URL]https://puntonorte.info/.[/URL].

The national guard is probably not the ideal long term solution. We have to remember Mexico the drug cartel violence is a huge problem in Mexico. The cartels actually control. Some small towns like Sinoloa. The police are often outgunned by the cartels. SoMexico's govt & law enforcement corruption problem needs to be reformed. The GN help a lot to help reduce the street crime & violence. It is no perfect as we have recently seen.

[QUOTE=Sol12;2935712]IMO the GN is a problem in Tijuana and it's not the job of soldiers to police a city. The police need to take back control of the city and winning the trust back of the people. This is why the former police chief is coming back and this is his philosophy. Hopefully he will be successful like before.

I follow the two main papers in Tijuana. [URL]https://www.elimparcial.com/tijuana/[/URL] and [URL]https://zetatijuana.com/.[/URL] Zeta is especially good at more in depth investigative journalism. Also sometimes you can find more in depth articles or better information of certain news items from some of the other sites. I don't want to list them all but if you search " noticias Tijuana" you will see some other sites that have good info. Especially [URL]https://puntonorte.info/.[/URL].[/QUOTE]

This is 80% the cops' fault for being corrupt and 20% mine for being sloppy. Learn from my mistake. I'm usually fine because I'm a white latino and blend in reasonably well with the locals, but I got a little careless and paid the price.

I did a recent medical tourism and pleasure trip-- I booked a Sunday through Thursday at Cascadas, partied hard Sunday / Monday, then had the medical stuff scheduled on Tuesday with the intent to recuperate in my room and party if possible for the duration. The appointment was early, so I was one of the only people on the street at 7 AM (Mexico is not a morning person culture for the most part.). Starting from Cascadas I headed west with the intent of hanging out in front of the southwest corner of Tropic Bar to hail an uber to get to my appointment. I crossed the street in front of a police cruiser and I think I had right of way, but regardless they did not much care for that. They pulled up next to me and asked why I was trembling (I wasn't). They then put me in the back of their squad car and searched my pockets. The younger cop "found" some drugs in my pocket and they informed me I was under arrest. Needless to say, I don't fuck with drugs in Tijuana and I'm sure they just have a baggy they find on every tourist they pick up.

They then started the drive around and high pressure gig-- you're going to jail, it's a thousand dollar fine, you'll have a record, etc. In the back of my mind, I knew even if I was exonerated it would be more expensive to miss my appointment than to deal with this shit, they ended up with all the money in my pocket (about $300-$400). They offered to drive me back to where they found me but I declined to end the encounter. Thankfully I got my phone and wallet back with cards / ID intact and hailed an uber from there, paying the doctor with a card.

The streets are abandoned that early, what I should have done is simply have the uber meet me in front of cascadas. And failing that, I should not have done anything to draw attention to myself by crossing in front of a police vehicle-- I got too comfortable in a city that's dangerous. I have no realistic way to complain, of course I don't have their badge numbers or car number.

Even with the cop extortion, still way cheaper to get medical care in Tijuana than America, LOL.

[QUOTE=ScvRusher;2936246]This is 80% the cops' fault for being corrupt and 20% mine for being sloppy. Learn from my mistake. I'm usually fine because I'm a white latino and blend in reasonably well with the locals, but I got a little careless and paid the price.

I did a recent medical tourism and pleasure trip-- I booked a Sunday through Thursday at Cascadas, partied hard Sunday / Monday, then had the medical stuff scheduled on Tuesday with the intent to recuperate in my room and party if possible for the duration. The appointment was early, so I was one of the only people on the street at 7 AM (Mexico is not a morning person culture for the most part.). Starting from Cascadas I headed west with the intent of hanging out in front of the southwest corner of Tropic Bar to hail an uber to get to my appointment. I crossed the street in front of a police cruiser and I think I had right of way, but regardless they did not much care for that. They pulled up next to me and asked why I was trembling (I wasn't). They then put me in the back of their squad car and searched my pockets. The younger cop "found" some drugs in my pocket and they informed me I was under arrest. Needless to say, I don't fuck with drugs in Tijuana and I'm sure they just have a baggy they find on every tourist they pick up.

They then started the drive around and high pressure gig-- you're going to jail, it's a thousand dollar fine, you'll have a record, etc. In the back of my mind, I knew even if I was exonerated it would be more expensive to miss my appointment than to deal with this shit, they ended up with all the money in my pocket (about $300-$400). They offered to drive me back to where they found me but I declined to end the encounter. Thankfully I got my phone and wallet back with cards / ID intact and hailed an uber from there, paying the doctor with a card.

The streets are abandoned that early, what I should have done is simply have the uber meet me in front of cascadas. And failing that, I should not have done anything to draw attention to myself by crossing in front of a police vehicle-- I got too comfortable in a city that's dangerous. I have no realistic way to complain, of course I don't have their badge numbers or car number.

Even with the cop extortion, still way cheaper to get medical care in Tijuana than America, LOL.[/QUOTE]Yeah, 100% of the time when I call an Uber or Didi from HK I either do it from my room at Cascadas or (more frequently) I do it from the waiting room in the Cascadas front lobby. Then I just wait there until the driver's ETA is 2 minutes or less. Don't see the need to call the Uber outside and just be chilling for 10-15 minutes where anything can happen LOL. Also, when I see a policia car approaching down a street I'm about to cross I always let them pass and don't make eye contact. In all my years going to Tijuana I've yet to have any negative interactions with policia but those are things I've always done just because they seemed to be common sense (at least for me).

I assume you were going to pay the doctor in cash given all the cash in your wallet. Otherwise, just no reason at all (IMO) to carry it with you, I would've left it hidden in my room. When I'm out and about in Tijuana I usually don't carry more than $50, which is probably too much since I use credit cards anyway. The dentist I go to in Tijuana accepts credit cards so I probably wouldn't have taken more than $20 with me if I was only going out for the dental appointment. The first dental appointment I ever had in Tijuana I took a large sum of cash to pay as I'd assumed for whatever reason that I'd only be able to pay in cash, but ended up being able to pay with a credit card, which I think most medical offices in Tijuana do offer as an option.

With all of the above said, think the biggest issue here was walking around Zona Norte at 7 AM in the morning. Pretty easy target that early, even something like 9-10 AM you probably would've been fine. At 7 AM in Tijuana don't think I've ever been anywhere in all my years other than in my room or catching a ride in front of Cascadas back to the border.

This is a odd to and disturbing incident. The police have not been bothering US pedestrians unless they are drunk or breaking the law. One tactic would be demand to be taken to the police station. If they persist you could demand that the check the bagee for finger prints. I would have gotten their badge number and report it. When I am stopped by a police officer I immediately hold my wallet & cell phone and money separately in my hand. It is also a good idea to pull. Out your pockets so they cannot plant. Anything. This might be sign the police corruption is on the rise again.

[QUOTE=BrotherMouzone;2936283]Yeah, 100% of the time when I call an Uber or Didi from HK I either do it from my room at Cascadas or (more frequently) I do it from the waiting room in the Cascadas front lobby. Then I just wait there until the driver's ETA is 2 minutes or less. Don't see the need to call the Uber outside and just be chilling for 10-15 minutes where anything can happen LOL. Also, when I see a policia car approaching down a street I'm about to cross I always let them pass and don't make eye contact. In all my years going to Tijuana I've yet to have any negative interactions with policia but those are things I've always done just because they seemed to be common sense (at least for me).

I assume you were going to pay the doctor in cash given all the cash in your wallet. Otherwise, just no reason at all (IMO) to carry it with you, I would've left it hidden in my room. When I'm out and about in Tijuana I usually don't carry more than $50, which is probably too much since I use credit cards anyway. The dentist I go to in Tijuana accepts credit cards so I probably wouldn't have taken more than $20 with me if I was only going out for the dental appointment. The first dental appointment I ever had in Tijuana I took a large sum of cash to pay as I'd assumed for whatever reason that I'd only be able to pay in cash, but ended up being able to pay with a credit card, which I think most medical offices in Tijuana do offer as an option..[/QUOTE]

Next time dial 078 on your phone and give them the police vehicle ID which should be on the outside of the vehicle. They will talk to the police and you will be let go.

[QUOTE=ScvRusher;2936246]This is 80% the cops' fault for being corrupt and 20% mine for being sloppy. Learn from my mistake. I'm usually fine because I'm a white latino and blend in reasonably well with the locals, but I got a little careless and paid the price.

I did a recent medical tourism and pleasure trip-- I booked a Sunday through Thursday at Cascadas, partied hard Sunday / Monday, then had the medical stuff scheduled on Tuesday with the intent to recuperate in my room and party if possible for the duration. The appointment was early, so I was one of the only people on the street at 7 AM (Mexico is not a morning person culture for the most part.). Starting from Cascadas I headed west with the intent of hanging out in front of the southwest corner of Tropic Bar to hail an uber to get to my appointment. I crossed the street in front of a police cruiser and I think I had right of way, but regardless they did not much care for that. They pulled up next to me and asked why I was trembling (I wasn't). They then put me in the back of their squad car and searched my pockets. The younger cop "found" some drugs in my pocket and they informed me I was under arrest. Needless to say, I don't fuck with drugs in Tijuana and I'm sure they just have a baggy they find on every tourist they pick up.

They then started the drive around and high pressure gig-- you're going to jail, it's a thousand dollar fine, you'll have a record, etc. In the back of my mind, I knew even if I was exonerated it would be more expensive to miss my appointment than to deal with this shit, they ended up with all the money in my pocket (about $300-$400). They offered to drive me back to where they found me but I declined to end the encounter. Thankfully I got my phone and wallet back with cards / ID intact and hailed an uber from there, paying the doctor with a card.

The streets are abandoned that early, what I should have done is simply have the uber meet me in front of cascadas. And failing that, I should not have done anything to draw attention to myself by crossing in front of a police vehicle-- I got too comfortable in a city that's dangerous. I have no realistic way to complain, of course I don't have their badge numbers or car number.

Even with the cop extortion, still way cheaper to get medical care in Tijuana than America, LOL.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Kdog;2936427]Next time dial 078 on your phone and give them the police vehicle ID which should be on the outside of the vehicle. They will talk to the police and you will be let go.[/QUOTE]Screw 078 . Next time dial 911 and tell them I have been robbed. When they ask for a description that's when you tell them it was the fing police and be sure to give them the car #. They will send a supervisor and hopefully you will get your money back and the ratero police will have some splaining to do.

How do you dial. 911 with a US phone number in Tijuana / Mexico. ? Tried dialing 078 & it does not work. Tried using 01152 911 &078 and did not work. You also have to remember that the tourist line has limited hours. When you try to hold cash. In your hands.

The police will sometimes try and stop you. But when I insisted they relentled.

[QUOTE=BaxterSlade;2936467]Screw 078 . Next time dial 911 and tell them I have been robbed. When they ask for a description that's when you tell them it was the fing police and be sure to give them the car #. They will send a supervisor and hopefully you will get your money back and the ratero police will have some splaining to do.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=BrotherMouzone;2936283]I assume you were going to pay the doctor in cash given all the cash in your wallet. Otherwise, just no reason at all (IMO) to carry it with you, I would've left it hidden in my room. When I'm out and about in Tijuana I usually don't carry more than $50, which is probably too much since I use credit cards anyway. The dentist I go to in Tijuana accepts credit cards so I probably wouldn't have taken more than $20 with me if I was only going out for the dental appointment. The first dental appointment I ever had in Tijuana I took a large sum of cash to pay as I'd assumed for whatever reason that I'd only be able to pay in cash, but ended up being able to pay with a credit card, which I think most medical offices in Tijuana do offer as an option.

With all of the above said, think the biggest issue here was walking around Zona Norte at 7 AM in the morning. Pretty easy target that early, even something like 9-10 AM you probably would've been fine. At 7 AM in Tijuana don't think I've ever been anywhere in all my years other than in my room or catching a ride in front of Cascadas back to the border.[/QUOTE]This is why it's partially my own damn fault. I've been to Tijuana a dozen times and never had an issue. Plus because I look like a local and speak passable Spanish, I don't get fucked with the way I might if I was blond or Asian. So I just carried the amount of money I do when I'm at home and acted like I do when I'm at home. It's actually just like piloting a plane; the most dangerous pilots have 100 to 500 hours of flight time. The newbies are razor sharp aware, the experienced people are experienced and can handle everything. The guys in between aren't as cautious as they are when they're new, but not experienced enough to just instinctively do everything right. That's pretty much the zone I fell into.

[QUOTE]This is a odd to and disturbing incident. The police have not been bothering US pedestrians unless they are drunk or breaking the law. One tactic would be demand to be taken to the police station. If they persist you could demand that the check the bagee for finger prints. I would have gotten their badge number and report it. When I am stopped by a police officer I immediately hold my wallet & cell phone and money separately in my hand. It is also a good idea to pull. Out your pockets so they cannot plant. Anything. This might be sign the police corruption is on the rise again.[/QUOTE]I got pulled into a police car, I had no way of proving that what they planted didn't come out of my pocket. But also: I was on the way to a medical appointment. It would be more expensive and more of a hassle to miss and rebook the appointment than to lose the cash. I may have played this differently if I wasn't in a rush.

[QUOTE]Next time dial 078 on your phone and give them the police vehicle ID which should be on the outside of the vehicle. They will talk to the police and you will be let go.[/QUOTE]That's an interesting thought should this happen again-- they told me to get into the vehicle. They also took my phone from me. Can I really refuse and say I'm dialing 078? That sounds like a good way to get shot.

[QUOTE]Screw 078 . Next time dial 911 and tell them I have been robbed. When they ask for a description that's when you tell them it was the fing police and be sure to give them the car #. They will send a supervisor and hopefully you will get your money back and the ratero police will have some splaining to do.
[/QUOTE]I'll keep this in mind for next time. But in the context of the reason I was out in the first place was for a medical appointment, I didn't have time for this.

[QUOTE]How do you dial. 911 with a US phone number in Tijuana / Mexico. ? Tried dialing 078 & it does not work. Tried using 01152 911 &078 and did not work. You also have to remember that the tourist line has limited hours. When you try to hold cash. In your hands.[/QUOTE]This is another issue. Google Fi is an odd duck; it works perfectly for me in San Diego. I've also had no problems with it in other countries including Ireland, France, and Italy. The minute I get to Tijuana its spotty at best. Seems wasteful to get a phone just for usage in Tijuana, I don't really go often enough to justify it.

[QUOTE=BaxterSlade;2936467]Screw 078 . Next time dial 911 and tell them I have been robbed. When they ask for a description that's when you tell them it was the fing police and be sure to give them the car #. They will send a supervisor and hopefully you will get your money back and the ratero police will have some splaining to do.[/QUOTE]How many times have you done this and how has it worked for you? What was the reaction of the police that were fucking with you when you made the call?

[QUOTE=ScvRusher;2936246]This is 80% the cops' fault for being corrupt and 20% mine for being sloppy.


I got too comfortable in a city that's dangerous.


Even with the cop extortion, still way cheaper to get medical care in Tijuana than America, LOL.[/QUOTE]You get what you get when partaking of the working girl monging lifestyle in Tijuana. The things we do for luv. Uh er lust. LOL.

"Denial is a psychological defense mechanism that psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud proposed. It's when someone rejects an uncomfortable fact and insists it's not true, even when there's overwhelming evidence. For example, the American Heart Association says denial is a common reason people delay heart attack treatment because symptoms can have other explanations.

[QUOTE=Hargow20;2936362]This is a odd to and disturbing incident. The police have not been bothering US pedestrians unless they are drunk or breaking the law. One tactic would be demand to be taken to the police station. If they persist you could demand that the check the bagee for finger prints. I would have gotten their badge number and report it. When I am stopped by a police officer I immediately hold my wallet & cell phone and money separately in my hand. It is also a good idea to pull. Out your pockets so they cannot plant. Anything. This might be sign the police corruption is on the rise again.[/QUOTE]Never experienced it personally, but my understanding from reading this and other message boards is the situation he described is very far from a rare occurence.

I think that standing up to / being confrontational with police is easier said than done for many, especially in a foreign country where many of us on these boards don't even speak the language. I'm actually chuckling a bit at thought of me using Google Translate to ask corrupt policia for their badge number or to demand that the bad they planted be checked for fingerprints.

My first thought if it ever comes to it for me, would be to make things as easy as possible for myself by taking the "L" and give them the money they are requesting if that's what it comes to. Like I've said before I usually don't walk around Tijuana with more than $50 in cash anyway so would just take the hit as the "cost of doing business" as Luke Powell would say.

But I'll state one more time that in 12 or so years of going to Tijuana, I've never been stopped by or had any other negative interactions with policia.

[QUOTE=BaxterSlade;2936467]Screw 078 . Next time dial 911 and tell them I have been robbed. When they ask for a description that's when you tell them it was the fing police and be sure to give them the car #. They will send a supervisor and hopefully you will get your money back and the ratero police will have some splaining to do.[/QUOTE]I'd like to know more about these "078" and "911" options. Are they actually effective, including for English speakers? By the "car number", I'm assuming you mean the 4-digit car ID following the "P" that appears prominently on all Tijuana police cars? Just trying to sort out the good advice from the bad (of which there's a lot on these boards LOL). My non-expert opinion is it's not wise to get confrontational or combative with police, especially corrupt policia in another country. Even in our country, people sometimes get shot or killed by police over that. But if it's actually effective maybe I consider trying if I ever get caught in a jam.

[QUOTE=AmorPorFavor;2936578]How many times have you done this and how has it worked for you? What was the reaction of the police that were fucking with you when you made the call?[/QUOTE]Happy to say in all the years going to Tijuana only robbed once by the police. My situation may have been different. I ran into a cop that was kind of out of control. Instead of making up false charges for a bribe. Or having evidence of me breaking any law he pretty much stole money right out of my hand. After he was gone I called the emergency number to report the crime and gave the operator the P car number. They told me where to wait and a supervisor would be meeting me shortly. The supervisor ended up calling the cops back to the scene returning money to me, it may have been more than he actually stole but pretty close to the amount. And to top it off he ordered the cop to give me a hug. I guess as a way to apologize. The ratero cop did seem embarrased and a couple other cops that showed up were even teasing him like he should have removed his velcro name tag.

Moving forward to these days I figured out that on my USA Phone dialing 078 does not work. However I did install an app from the Tijuana police that acts like an emergency button on your phone. I know that works. A couple of times I was fighting with the GF as she was trying to get my phone from me and the button got accidently pushed. Within seconds I got a call back from the police asking if there was a problem. On those occasions it was a spanish speaker and I handed the phone to the GF and she explained it was an accident and that was it. On the original 911 robbery report it was an english speaker.

Still happens. But these days very rare in recent years. If you read the posts the police targeting US drivers. This. Might be more coon on other parts of Mexico. I have held my cash & cell phone on multiple times. Once the cops realize you know the law they will relent. The key is to be cal. & courteous about it.

[QUOTE=BrotherMouzone;2936615]Never experienced it personally, but my understanding from reading this and other message boards is the situation he described is very far from a rare occurence.

I think that standing up to / being confrontational with police is easier said than done for many, especially in a foreign country where many of us on these boards don't even speak the language. I'm actually chuckling a bit at thought of me using Google Translate to ask corrupt policia for their badge number or to demand that the bad they planted be checked for fingerprints.

My first thought if it ever comes to it for me, would be to make things as easy as possible for myself by taking the "L" and give them the money they are requesting if that's what it comes to. Like I've said before I usually don't walk around Tijuana with more than $50 in cash anyway so would just take the hit as the "cost of doing business" as Luke Powell would say.

But I'll state one more time that in 12 or so years of going to Tijuana, I've never been stopped by or had any other negative interactions with policia.

I'd like to know more about these "078" and "911" options. Are they actually effective, including for English speakers? By the "car number", I'm assuming you mean the 4-digit car ID following the "P" that appears prominently on all Tijuana police cars? Just trying to sort out the good advice from the bad (of which there's a lot on these boards LOL). My non-expert opinion is it's not wise to get confrontational or combative with police, especially corrupt policia in another country. Even in our country, people sometimes get shot or killed by police over that. But if it's actually effective maybe I consider trying if I ever get caught in a jam.[/QUOTE]