MikeDavid Posted March 18, 2009 #1 Share Posted March 18, 2009 Just a little warning here. We just returned from a 7 day Mex Riviera cruise on the Star. One of the folks we met on the ship was robbed in Mazatlan and almost arrested. He attended one of those time-share seminars while in port and needed to go to the bathroom. While sitting in the bathroom stall, a policeman popped his head over the stall from the next toilet and told him to unlock the stall door. Of course the man said no, so the Mexican cop reached down and unlocked the door. When it opened, there was another cop standing there with his gun drawn. They demanded the man's wallet to check his ID. When the wallet was returned, all of the man's money was missing (he said about $1500 american). He asked where his money was and the 2 cops claimed there wasn't any money in the wallet to begin with. The conversation apparently became heated and they threatened to arrest this guy. Fortunately there was an NCL employee in the bathroom as well who ended up saving this guy's butt. He called the local police chief who ended up coming down and straightening it all out. But the cop that took the money, ran off prior to the police cheif getting there. So this guy never did get any of his money back. Just a word of warning here, Mexico is relatively safe, especially in the tourist areas where the ships stop, but pay attention to your surroundings, don't get so hammered that you can't take care of yourself, and make sure you take someone with you if you go any place that's off the beaten path. Also, I wouldn't suggest taking $1500 cash with you when going to port. We take $100 or $200 maximum, then use our credit card if needed, or go to a local ATM and get pesos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drm93 Posted March 18, 2009 #2 Share Posted March 18, 2009 wow......very scary story! thank goodness he wasn't hurt or put in jail,but very sad that all his money was taken. I agree with not taking large amounts of cash in port,especially mexico. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nyflush Posted March 18, 2009 #3 Share Posted March 18, 2009 I have heard stories like this before, I'm glad the man is ok. That is so scary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smeyer418 Posted March 18, 2009 #4 Share Posted March 18, 2009 I don't mean to rain on any ones parade and while this may be true its just as likely he was scammed out of the money and didn't want to tell the truth or he want to visit let us say a cat house and they rolled him. No one should carry that much cash.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Wink* Posted March 19, 2009 #5 Share Posted March 19, 2009 I don't mean to rain on any ones parade and while this may be true its just as likely he was scammed out of the money and didn't want to tell the truth or he want to visit let us say a cat house and they rolled him. No one should carry that much cash.... Oh Sid.. That's scary.. only I was thinking "casino." That's the type of cynical mind I have. MikeDavid.. I totally believe you, and think your advice is excellent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smeyer418 Posted March 19, 2009 #6 Share Posted March 19, 2009 Oh Sid.. That's scary.. only I was thinking "casino." That's the type of cynical mind I have. MikeDavid.. I totally believe you, and think your advice is excellent. most people will tell you if they lost the money at a casino except their own spouse. The reason I say scammed is I do some work with the local police precinct and an employee of one of our friends reported that she was mugged for her Christmas bonus. She was reluctant to make a police report., When we finally convinced her to make the report..the police told us her story didn't make sense and that it was probable she was scammed out of the money. the police didn't want to take a report which would turn out to be false and then have to charge her with making a false report. It turns out she was in fact scammed out of the money which she finally admitted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Wink* Posted March 19, 2009 #7 Share Posted March 19, 2009 most people will tell you if they lost the money at a casino except their own spouse. The reason I say scammed is I do some work with the local police precinct and an employee of one of our friends reported that she was mugged for her Christmas bonus. She was reluctant to make a police report., When we finally convinced her to make the report..the police told us her story didn't make sense and that it was probable she was scammed out of the money. the police didn't want to take a report which would turn out to be false and then have to charge her with making a false report. It turns out she was in fact scammed out of the money which she finally admitted. So how was she scammed? Don't scams mean the party that was swindled had to agree to do something which, in turn, became a scam? Like.. Give me $500 so that I can use that money to buy hot items, which will, in turn, make you $5,000? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smeyer418 Posted March 19, 2009 #8 Share Posted March 19, 2009 So how was she scammed? Don't scams mean the party that was swindled had to agree to do something which, in turn, became a scam? Like.. Give me $500 so that I can use that money to buy hot items, which will, in turn, make you $5,000? The PD didn't tell me but it was an internet scam...I don't know which one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Wink* Posted March 19, 2009 #9 Share Posted March 19, 2009 The PD didn't tell me but it was an internet scam...I don't know which one It's interesting to see those internet scams showing up on court shows like Judge Judy. It's the whole.. "if it sounds too good to be true..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retiredonthesea Posted March 19, 2009 #10 Share Posted March 19, 2009 My nephew and two of his buddies where robbed by the Mexican police in Acapulco---they where two blocks from their motel when the police drove up in a pickup and asked to see ID's---took their money. REAL police or not, they had guns and where not going to take any chances of getting shot. DN had money put in his socks so they only got $20.00 from him, but one of the other guys had $800.00!:eek: Lesson learned DON'T carry alot of cash! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Haynes Posted March 19, 2009 #11 Share Posted March 19, 2009 Hint from a Humphrey Bogart film, always ask for their badges. You will soon know whether they are actually policemen or acting as ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms belp Posted March 19, 2009 #12 Share Posted March 19, 2009 I ran into another poster earlier today who thought this was just a bunch of malarkey. I can't wait for mbisson to find a picture of that!:) Chris got an update that the ban on Mexico has been extended until April 4th, we are going until April 5th. You can still catch up on the website of the US State Department. Now I learned we need to get a typhoid shot before we go to Central America. Looking forward to a lovely vacation!:o The doctor's office receptionist doesn't even know if they offer it.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crew mom Posted March 19, 2009 #13 Share Posted March 19, 2009 Wow - sorry to hear about that. If at all possible don't hand over your entire wallet to anyone - remove the ID and give them that. Don't carry too much money in port and only carry a copy of your passport. Leave the original on board the ship. Bad things can happen anywhere but best to stay with, or near, a group of people. Less likely to be singled out. And if you are singled out don't be afraid to be on the loud side and try to get other peoples attention. Not many people want to jack someone up with an audience watching. Ms belp - Typhoid & Hepatitus A & B are recommended for all 3rd world countries now since it is so easily transmitted. Better safe then sorry. I did the Typhoid before going to India. I took 4 pills every other day. It's a live bacteria so no antibiotics etc when taking it. I believe that you can also do a one time shot but it's effective for 3 years versus 5 years for the tablets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandpaul Posted March 19, 2009 #14 Share Posted March 19, 2009 Hint from a Humphrey Bogart film, always ask for their badges. You will soon know whether they are actually policemen or acting as ones. What do you do if they say "No"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punkmuse Posted March 19, 2009 #15 Share Posted March 19, 2009 my husband and I spent a week in Mazatlan on a land based vacation and never once felt unsafe and we did a lot of wandering and even were out very late at night. we also never saw any police so maybe that is why we felt safe :rolleyes: my sister in law spent several months driving around Mexico and C America (including Mazatlan) in a VW bus and said they learned that when harassed by police for a bribe if they asked to be taken to the police station to document it or have it official or something that they were left alone. i think that is what they said. but i also dont think they had any guns drawn on them. :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newmexicoNita Posted March 19, 2009 #16 Share Posted March 19, 2009 Just a little warning here. We just returned from a 7 day Mex Riviera cruise on the Star. One of the folks we met on the ship was robbed in Mazatlan and almost arrested. He attended one of those time-share seminars while in port and needed to go to the bathroom. While sitting in the bathroom stall, a policeman popped his head over the stall from the next toilet and told him to unlock the stall door. Of course the man said no, so the Mexican cop reached down and unlocked the door. When it opened, there was another cop standing there with his gun drawn. They demanded the man's wallet to check his ID. When the wallet was returned, all of the man's money was missing (he said about $1500 american). He asked where his money was and the 2 cops claimed there wasn't any money in the wallet to begin with. The conversation apparently became heated and they threatened to arrest this guy. Fortunately there was an NCL employee in the bathroom as well who ended up saving this guy's butt. He called the local police chief who ended up coming down and straightening it all out. But the cop that took the money, ran off prior to the police cheif getting there. So this guy never did get any of his money back. Just a word of warning here, Mexico is relatively safe, especially in the tourist areas where the ships stop, but pay attention to your surroundings, don't get so hammered that you can't take care of yourself, and make sure you take someone with you if you go any place that's off the beaten path. Also, I wouldn't suggest taking $1500 cash with you when going to port. We take $100 or $200 maximum, then use our credit card if needed, or go to a local ATM and get pesos. thanks for the warning, I will add to this, we have a friend that was mugged and an attempted robbery in So. America a couple of months ago. She had just finished a port tour and was geting off the bus. Other than a few bruises she was ok, but scared the CC## out of her.. Nita ps I don't think I will plan a cruise to anywhere in the area for awhile.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newmexicoNita Posted March 19, 2009 #17 Share Posted March 19, 2009 my husband and I spent a week in Mazatlan on a land based vacation and never once felt unsafe and we did a lot of wandering and even were out very late at night. we also never saw any police so maybe that is why we felt safe :rolleyes: my sister in law spent several months driving around Mexico and C America (including Mazatlan) in a VW bus and said they learned that when harassed by police for a bribe if they asked to be taken to the police station to document it or have it official or something that they were left alone. i think that is what they said. but i also dont think they had any guns drawn on them. :eek: The story could be a little off base, like Smeyer mentioned, no one should be wandering around with a lot of cash, pretty stupid, but on the other hand, you are talking about something different. Right now Mexico isn't the place it was even a few months ago. Nita Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
travel_lover Posted March 19, 2009 #18 Share Posted March 19, 2009 My boyfriend who is Mexican tells me stories like this all the time, he says the first people to rob you and hurt you will be the police...you really need to becareful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG_Steve Posted March 19, 2009 #19 Share Posted March 19, 2009 What do you do if they say "No"? Pray that you didn't just upset an unbalanced criminal. Really, two crooked cops, or impersonators have you with your shorts down in the toilet, or two on the street with guns. Yeah, asking for badges is going to intimidate the heck out of the bad guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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