Crime in Guanajuato, Mexico

About 85% of the total content of this website can be conveniently purchased in this small guide to help the traveler to Mexico know what to enjoy when arriving in this obscure but significant Colonial Mexican Town. What you learn in this site can be taken with you to Guanajuato, as a guide, in book form.

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RECENT CRIME IN GUANAJUATO

For the first time during my nine years in Guanajuato, I have been a crime victim. First, I was pickpocketed by a pair of light-fingerd young men at the bottom of the steps leading up to the supermarket, La Comercial. Later, police told me pickpocketing is most common during school vacations.

The second time was frightening. I was going toward my house with a friend along a main street I had walked many times in the hour before midnight. But this time, after going to an Indian movie that lasted until 12:30am and then dropping in at a party, we were on Paseo de la Presa about 2am when our assailants struck just before arriving atan escape route they could use as an easy getaway. When we were assalted by the two pistol-packing young men, my visitor gave up her expensive leather purse laden with electronics right away My thief had to have only a little more patience; soon I gave him mine with hardly more than an old folding umbrella inside. As I was bleeding from a scalp wound and scratches on my right hand, a neighbor called the police who came with an ambulance and a paramedic to dress my wounds.

That afternoon, my visitor and I went to La Judicial on Calle Alhondiga to make a denuncia that would get the crime on record as a case. Today, I followed up by going to an open city meeting where I had a chance to sit down with the policeman and paramedic who had been there. I made a sketch of the lighting problem and the way a parked car blocks a view of the callejon. I made sure to mentione that I had heard of a robbery in the privada a few months before. I also suggested contacting the two landladies owning property along the street. The police officer assured me he knows the sons of one of them

The young woman who sold me a replacement purse said she would send details to the two radio stations. I hope she did. I'll let you know if we receive better lighting in the privada--culdesac--but this one has a pedestrian stairway going uphill.

Don't think that because you're on vacation, criminals are too.Avoid being out after 11pm or whenever there are few people about.

Avoid carrying more with you than you can afford to loseGo to an ATM during daylight hours & don't count your money on the street.

Afterward, talk about what happened with friends. You'll get sympathy and useful information.

Learn from the experience but don't blame yourself. It takes at least two for a crime to take place.

Publicado por Rochelle Cashdan en 10:21 AMEtiquetas: guanajuato Mexico crime security

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The safety issue is always hard to discuss since it is dependent upon what area of Mexico you plan visiting or to which you might desire to expatriate.

What many sites and tourism-expatriation books or guides never bother to point out is that where there is an abundance of tourism and expatriation, there is going to be an abundance of crime. American tourists are a magnet for Mexican criminals.

Look, Mexicans, particularly the poor ones, are brought up to believe that Americans are filthy rich and just waiting to be plundered. Now, lest you want to send me nasty emails about this, let me tell you that I've sat in the kitchens of Mexicans and discussed this over a cup of coffee. I remember asking this young woman in both Spanish and English whether or not I was understanding her correctly.

She went on to say that she was taught very early in life that Gringos were meant to be plundered and she learned how to do it. I once received an email from a Mexican woman who told me that she was encouraged to learn English so that she would be better equipped in ripping off the Gringo.

Are all Mexican without exception like this? Of course not and that should go without saying...however, having lived here for more than five years, our personal observation and conversations with Mexicans leads us to believe that it is more of a significant problem than the popular press and guidebooks would have you knowing.

Therein lies the problem. Most Americans come to Mexico based on a Concept of Mexico and not a Reality.

If a Mexican wants to sell you, the monolingual American, a piece of real estate do you think he or she is going to tell you the truth about the condition of the house? This is one of the ways Gringos get swindled in this country--real estate transactions. There are no disclosure laws here!

Also, the Mexican criminal element relies on the American believing the hype that all of Mexico is one big happy FANTASY ISLAND WELCOMING PARTY just waiting to make your acquaintance. Americans who come from some of the most dangerous cities in America will come to San Miguel de Allende or the city where I live, Guanajuato, and all of a sudden they act like the have come to visit or live in a Paradise on Earth where nothing evil dwells. They will walk the streets in Guanajuato at 3:30 AM and wonder why they got jumped and rolled by a street gang.

If you are planning a visit to Mexico, no matter the city, don't believe the hype you will be told about the absolute safety and security of the streets of Mexico. While a comparison between Mexico City and Guanajuato would show Guanajuato being the safer of the two, you must exercise the same cautions in Guanajuato as you would in a much larger city.

San Miguel de Allende Directory

Since the unprecedented shooting of a young man at the Sanmiguelada in September in San Miguel de Allende, we have had more armed assaults during the month of November. Abstract: Crime in San Miguel de Allende

Boomers Abroad - New Responses to Crime in San Miguel

We have always maintained that Mexico is a very safe place. People here are family and religion-oriented. They watch out for their neighbors and one another. With some exceptions, of course, the kinds of gruesome crimes we hear about in the U.S. and elsewhere don't occur here. Yes, there has been a serial killer preying on women in Juarez for some time now. And yes, there are drug and gang-related crimes that occur, especially in the border areas. FULL STORY

Mostly Gringo Crime in San Miguel de Allende

Municipal authorities closed the city�s first luxury rental home due to lack of appropriate documentation on April 28. The closure marks the start of a city crackdown on unregistered accommodations which compete unfairly with legally registered, tax-paying businesses and constitute substantial levels of tax evasion. Crackdown on tax evasion by undocumented mostly Gringo workers!

Supporting Evidence: "They Love Us Here": American Migrants in Mexico

Additional Info about Gringo Crime in SMA

Spotlight Fallacy and Crime in Mexico

In a column I wrote in August of 2005, titled, Kidnapping Americans in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, I said this about the American press and their coverage of the events then taking place in the border city: Click Here for Article.

Living in Mexico - My Wife Was Attacked

In our first book, "The Plain Truth about Living in Mexico," I wrote a chapter about crime. In that chapter, I tried to drive home the point that by "comparison," Mexico is safer than the United States. I quoted FBI statistics and stories to make the point that Americans, when regarding crime in Mexico, needed to have a little perspective. I no longer hold that view. Read More.

Gay Couple Attacked

A month ago we had a robbery, which turned into a brutal, attempted murder on Sollano Street in centro.

Two Mexicans in there mid twenties appeared at our door at 9pm onWednesday the 12th of December. They insisted that they knew us and had just returned from a long trip to Chicago. Since they asked for me by my legal name James Castro we were suspicious, However, they seemed convincing after a few minutes of conversation. We decided to meet them at the door and ultimately let them in to discuss how we had met.

They were polite and appeared educated and genuine. After 10-15minutes they became violent. We were discovered the next morninglocked in our wine cellar. Both of us were severely beaten and barely able to move. The next morning, Wesley was able to make enough noise to get the attention of our staff. I was found with a noose around my neck and rolled up in a tarp. The doctors later discovered that I had lost half of my blood. We are both lucky to have survived.

The criminals somehow loaded all of our televisions, computers and other electronics including a heavy safe into their vehicle on Sollano.

After spending a week in the hospital and a few weeks recovering we have decided to publicly share our story. Our mistake was clearly in being trusting. We are now taking the precautions necessary to protect ourselves and want to provide awareness to others.

We are not immune in San Miguel de Allende to some of the crimes that have occurred elsewhere in Mexico. Our experience has beendevastating. We greatly appreciate the love and support that hasbeen demonstrated by our friends in San Miguel. We will be forever grateful.

The city has not responded to our situation and, after a month, has made no progress on our case. We are frustrated by the legal system here but will continue to do what is necessary to find the criminals.

Jim Castro & Wesley Gleason

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Crime and Security in Guanajuato, Mexico