Mexico kidnap: The inside story. Another victim, who had medical issues and wore a colostomy bag, was stripped naked, tied up and stunned with a Taser, the Miami Herald reported. TheU.S. State Department issued an updated Travel AdvisoryWednesday for U.S. travelers visiting Mexico, including new state-level adviceandinformation on "kidnapping risk.". Isabel Miranda de Wallace, president of the Alto al Secuestro organization, reported that only 82 criminal events were recorded during the month of August. Mexico breaks records as destination and origin of migration in 2022. Discrimination against indigenous communities, and especially. Country officers are available to speak with you Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. For assistance with an abduction in progress or any emergency situation that occurs after normal business hours, on weekends, or federal holidays, please call toll free at 1-888-407-4747. In September, the State Department tripled the reward for information leading to his capture from $5 million to $15 million. My work focuses on people and their struggle to survive in an increasingly cruel world. Millions turn to Vox to educate themselves, their family, and their friends about whats happening in the world around them, and to learn about things that spark their curiosity. The monthly report detailed that in January the number of detainees for the crime of kidnapping decreased to 72.4 percent, since only 35 people were apprehended, while in December 127 arrests were reported. Tamaulipas state due to crime and kidnapping. Mexican prosecutors say they have found a total of eight dead people on Cancun with two bodies dumped in two spots and four others individually found shot to death. S2, Ep2. My sister is always struggling with money and drugs: I own a house with my husband and mother. The Massabkis believe they were able to escape in part because they are both fluent in Spanish and could understand what the kidnappers were saying. All the violence comes at a time when Mexico is trying to bolster its tourism sector, which accounts for 8.5 percent of the countrys gross domestic product. Despite the opening of specialized prosecutors offices, the government has not yet been able to curb the cruelty of themurders, uprisings, and extortion. [1/8] Migrants who recently crossed the border and were caught walk back to Mexico after being dropped off by border patrol agents in Laredo, Texas, U.S. June 15, 2022.Picture taken June 15, 2022 . Mazatln Carnival: How much was spent and recovered? Two men promised to smuggle at least three Cuban migrants into the United States, but instead locked them in a Merida house and tortured them, Florida prosecutors say. Frank ran and found police who returned to get Jennifer, who was hiding in a tree from her attackers. Cabeza de Vaca without limits: former governor persecuted by justice will seek the Presidency! (Courtesy of John Sevigny). 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Other places in the world are far more violent., But for Almonte, who organizes seminars for US law enforcement on Mexican cartels, things are out of control and the Mexican government does not have a handle on it, he said. Abducting people and demanding ransom money is one way to do that. A large part of this can be attributed to the aggressive security policies of former Mexican President Felipe Caldern, whose Kingpin Strategy which aimed to arrest various cartel leaders disrupted what was once a relatively peaceful balance of power between the larger cartels. Flix offers opium dealer Guerra a partnership deal. Cenotes Santa Barbara. They dont lose any sleep over who they shoot. Yet drug-related violence and widespread media coverage of Mexico's insecurity have severely impacted its tourism industry. It ended on Sunday the 18th, when police officers broke into the building at 113 . Unfortunately, in other latitudes of the country, the victims and investigation files for the crime of kidnapping have increased significantly. The woman known as La Jefa the chief was Jaliscos main accountant, part of a subgroup known as Los Cuinis, Almonte said. But now that many of those criminal organizations have begun to splinter, there are more groups vying for a piece of the drug trade, which means that they have more costs to meet. Its slogan is: Were all going to behave., MEXICAN BUSINESSWOMAN DECAPITATED AFTER FAMILY WOULDNT PAY RANSOM, REPORTS SAY. The three Santa Barbara cenotes are in the pueblo (small town) of Homun, where you'll find many of the best cenotes near Merida. Financial contributions from our readers are a critical part of supporting our resource-intensive work and help us keep our journalism free for all. We were held in a house that was practically a torture chamber., He added: I have met a lot of cartel people with my work I havent met anyone as particularly cruel as these men. Governments around the world (United States, United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia) identify kidnapping as a concern for visitors to Mexico. Employee Appreciation Day gestures are nice, but heres what employees really want. Beginning around 2006, criminal groups began to use kidnappings and the ransom money they got from desperate families to help fund those activities, according to Vctor Manuel Snchez Valds, a research professor at the Autonomous University of Coahuila, Mexico. The abduction and massacre of 43 Mexican students in Ayotzinapa, the seizing and murder of two federal agents in February, the kidnapping of three students by a group posing as police in March, and the disappearance of a politicians sister in a town just outside of Mexico City in March are the most recent high-profile examples of a criminal business strategy that has ballooned over the past decade. Unfortunately, their story is part of a much larger trend in Mexico, where almost 11 million Americans vacationed last year. @WallaceIsabel @Jaime_BonillaV @FGEBC @elvigia pic.twitter.com/QRhaovPKb7. The entire list of state-level advisories can be found online. But this number is likely a low ball. According to the 2012 estimates, there were 100,000 Mennonites living in Mexico [1] (including 32,167 baptized adult church members), [5] the vast majority of them, or about 90,000 are established in the state of Chihuahua, [2] 6,500 were living in Durango, [3] with the rest living in small colonies in the states of . In recent weeks, many popular destinations for U.S travelers have changed to Level Four: Do Not Travel. Jennifer said she still has nightmares about the couples ordeal. To get toPlayas de Rosarito, most tourists travel by car on roads with stunning views of the turquoise ocean and steep cliffs. Two human rights organizations, the Association . The authorities are colluding with the kidnappers, she said. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved. [The authorities] say they dont have enough information, Davids sister, Lourdes, said. Robbery, kidnapping, drug wars and murder are not the only risks in Mexico. The government has had successes in capturing some of its most wanted criminals; consequently, organized criminal groups are becoming much less organized and disciplined. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Police are often involved in the kidnappings, either by conducting them jointly with criminal groups or by taking their cut and looking the other way. He covers organized crime, immigration, farm policy, and anything in between. Am I crazy? After my mother died, my cousin took her designer purse, and my aunt took 8 paintings from her home then things really escalated, What's next for bonds in 2023 after the worst year in history. So among stories of drug cartels, kidnappings, and more, it might get you wonderingis Merida, Mexico safe? MUGGING RISK : LOW. Express kidnappings made up 66 percent of all kidnapping crimes in 2016, according to the National Institute for Statistics and Geography in Mexico. She climbed 20 feet up a tree and hid among the branches for several hours before Frank returned with officials later. Dangerous Areas in Cancun. The kidnapping shocks middle-class, Long Island suburbia and makes nationwide headlines. 11 March 2016. From about 2007 to 2016, the number of criminal groups in Mexico rocketed from six to 400, according to Mexico United Against Organized Crime. They had both been to Mexico a handful of times over the years, but said that experience didnt help them avoid this incident. It wasnt her brother. A Florida couple was kidnapped in Mexico City in May of 2017 while scouting wedding locations. Ramirez was taken first, according to a text message that Rivera frantically sent to a friend. Various groups have splintered into smaller gangs, which have branched out into different illegal business activities, and the associated violence is spreading across Mexico., Dont miss: What I learned after being robbed at gunpoint in Mexico, Kidnappings in Mexico are largely underreported, The actual number of kidnappings in Mexico is largely underreported, according to the OSAC, due to widespread belief among tourists and locals alike that the police may be involved in the crime or are unable to resolve the situation.. Mexico City's . In her message the young woman calls on women to be careful. Call Davids mom! The men commanded the couple to remove all of their jewelry and blindfolded Frank as the assailants drove them to a second location. The only U.S. cities that rank higher than Merida are Irvine, California, and Amarillo, Texas. Its part of a trend experts refer to as the democratization of kidnapping. There's more bad news. Mexico remains a safe country for tourists in general, and has a lower homicide rate per capita than countries such as Brazil, Jamaica or Colombia, he said. States that have scores of 4, meaning they should be avoided completely due to crime are: Colima, Guerrero, Michoacan, Sinaloa, and Tamaulipas. We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Criminal groups earn less per victim but can carry out many more kidnappings without attracting the attention of the authorities, according to Juan Francisco Torres Landa, a consultant for the organization Mexico United Against Organized Crime. He said he is speaking out about his experience because there are thousands of other victims who cannot. Finally, someone picked up. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Founded by Juan Nepomuceno Guerra Crdenas in the 1930s in Matamoros, the Gulf Cartel first smuggled alcohol across the border during Prohibition. Sevigny told Fox News Wednesday that the men handcuffed him, beat him and tortured him for 38 hours. Last night there was an alleged attempt to kidnap a young woman in the streets of the Juan Pablo II subdivision, but two neighbors intervened and prevented the kidnapping. Zambada Garcia, who headed up his own eponymous criminal operation before joining the Sinaloa Cartel alongside El Chapo, is reportedly in ill health and in hiding. Getty Images. U.S. authorities captured Crespo in Texas while Valdes was arrested in Connecticut, where a federal magistrate judge ordered that he be held without bail pending trial. But for many criminal groups, the risks inherent in these kidnappings the publicity and police attention they attracted often werent enough to justify the reward. I was not kidnapped because of my photographs as far as I know. Cartel members last year tried to assassinate Omar Garcia Harfuch, Mexico Citys chief of police, in an attack that wounded him and left three people dead, including two of his bodyguards. All rights reserved. Between January and March 2018, almost 400 people were kidnapped. The following is a . However travelers should always do some basic research before choosing a vacation destination and some areas of the country are more dangerous than others.. Tulum will keep growing because the Mexican government is really investing in tourism here, said Susann Rottloff, a Tulum-based realtor and German expatriate who has lived in Tulum for the last three years. The Jalisco New Generation Cartel was founded in 2009 by Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes (El Mencho), who is among the most wanted drug traffickers on the planet after the 2014 arrest of Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, head of the Sinaloa cartel. All rights reserved. After 2007, as organized crime fragmented and groups faced more competition from rival organizations, abductions increased by almost 200 percent, according to SNSP data. While the majority of Cancun is pretty safe, it's still not the safest place to stay in Mexico. See all contact information. U.S. government employees are forbidden from traveling to those states due to widespread violent crime., We just want other people to know these dangers exist, Frank Massabki said. But instead of launching a raid at that location, they launch a raid at some other random location. Crespo and Valdez promised their victims safe passage across the Yucatan Straits and then overland across Mexico, according to court documents. Thats the way they think.. With Mexicos kidnapping problem only getting worse, more and more families are experiencing the pain of seeing a loved one disappear and facing up to the grim reality that they may never come home. A month after his kidnapping, Veracruz prosecutor Jorge Winckler Ortiz reported that his office, as well as the FBI, were investigating something that Sevigny denies. The men got out of their truck to beat them, breaking away their mirror, then they got into their vehicles and followed my neighbors to their house threatening them, she wrote. Mexicos kidnapping problem was bad enough when most of the crimes were being committed by a handful of cartels. In addition, more than 1 million US citizens call Mexico home, living there as permanent expat residents. Kidnappings reached their highest levels ever in Mexico last year, with 1,698 kidnappings in 2013, according to the Mexican government. None of the killings occurred . There are no tourist kidnappings in Puerto Vallarta that I'm aware of. CANCUN CLUB SHOOTING LEAVES 5 DEAD, 5 WOUNDED, AUTHORITIES SAY. My main concern is about the people who cant get out, he said. Desperate to get their sons back, the Ramirez and Rivera families made a payment to the kidnappers. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. After hours of being held hostage, several violent altercations, and a failed attempted rape, the two were able to free themselves. But Deborah, Ramirezs older sister, believes the reason is more obvious and more troubling. Like a scene out of a movie, the friends of an American tourist had a miserable night out in the Cancun area. Verdin taunts the DEA agents torturing him. The couple filed a police report, which MarketWatch reviewed for this story, and flew back to the U.S. for medical treatment, including an emergency surgery on Jennifers nose, which was broken during a fight with her attackers. He added that because of how kidnappers conducted themselves, he assumes they were police officers. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has launched a campaign aimed at persuading people to not break the law. Walt and his team plan retaliatory kidnappings. Meanwhile, a nonprofit organization revealed Tuesday that there have been 69 reported kidnapping cases over the same period. Hoy presentamos nuestro informe mensual . Kidnapping methods have also changed. Re: Cartels and kidnapping in PV. In the tourist town of Rosarito, the presence ofthe Jalisco Nueva Generacin Cartel,Sinaloa, Tijuana, and Santa Rosa de Limahave been identified. At the risk of stating the obvious, the more urban the environment the higher the risk of a kidnapping. I will be back to Latin America. The state ofBaja California cannot clean its face from the violence that thedrug traffickingleft. From brutal beheadings to violent kidnappings, the cartel wars of Cancun have unleashed horror on Mexico's Caribbean coast as gangsters wreak havoc feet away from luxury resorts. Help me! However, few of the homicide victims are tourists, according to Duncan Wood, director of the Mexico Institute, a nonprofit that works to improve cooperation between the U.S. and Mexico. The U.S. State Department issued an updated Travel Advisory Wednesday for U.S. travelers visiting Mexico, including new state-level advice and information on "kidnapping . A few hours later, Ramirez managed to contact his sister, Deborah. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has launched a campaign aimed at persuading people to not break the law. And then there is the Sinaloa Cartel. ", "Use caution when traveling to Mexico as you would to any other country, but also don't let some of these media headlines of violence and criminality undermine the wonderful things that Mexico has to offer and its rich history," she said. While its unclear whether the high-profile arrest will lead to the Jalisco Cartels retreat, the rival Gulf Cartel also faces challenges with the recent death of their leader, Ariel (El Tigre) Trevino Pena, who was killed by the Mexican army in a shootout in Matamoros in October. In our piece, How to manager you Mexico vacation and not get shot I tell the story of a taxi ride in Puerto Vallarta where the driver of the cab makes a call to an unidentified individual and speaks of how the cab with the older white haired male and redheaded female will arrive in about 20 mins. After the 'Colado' was kidnapped, his alleged captors sent photographs to the man's family to ask for a ransom of about 10 million pesos. Hearing this, my wife and I exited the cab at the next stop light. And the problems getting worse. We live in purgatory: My wife has a multimillion-dollar trust fund, but my mother-in-law controls it. No way was I going to go back to Cordoba that felt like a trap, he said. End your day with a swim in Cenote Zaci, just five minutes from downtown. If money was paid, the victims were sent on a bus to the U.S. border and instructed to ask for asylum, according to prosecutors. When they saw that the neighbors came out they got into their truck and left, she said. Legal Statement. Market data provided by Factset. Before 2020, more than eight million Americans visited Mexico each year, and a 2019 census reported that 1.2 million American and Canadian expats call Mexico home.. Expats are mostly drawn to the beach areas for the amazing weather, crystal-clear Pacific Ocean or Caribbean Sea, the lower cost of living, and the . It had access to European ideas as well, since its capital Mrida was less than thirty miles from Yucatan's main port, Progreso. MRIDA YUCATAN.- Last night there was analleged attempt to kidnap a young womanin the streets of theJuan Pablo II subdivision, but two neighbors intervened and prevented the kidnapping. Scores are obtained through a methodology that includes crimes such as homicide, kidnapping, willful injury, and extortion. We can't provide you with security and protection. According to theCitizen Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice AC, the rearrangement and the dispute of the cartels by the areas of the state, brought the municipalityof Playas de Rosarito, Baja California, to first place in the list of the most violent sites in Mexico. The foreign-looking men, according to the woman,blocked her way and tried to get her into the truck, but two neighbors recognized her and came to help her. Information about crime in Merida, Mexico. During the height of the pandemic last year, the countrys tourism revenues plummeted by more than 50 percent. Among those killed were Rhonita Maria Miller, 30, and her four children Howard, 12, Krystal 10, and 8-month-old babies Titus and Tiana. Since 2006, Mexico has dropped significantly in Transparency Internationals Corruption Perception Index, moving from position 70 to 135. Cecilia A. narrated that she was walking on the aforementioned avenue whensuddenly two subjects aboard a red Jeep approached. Arrested in an upscale Guadalajara neighborhood on Monday, Gonzalez Valencia is charged with laundering money for the cartel. While celebrating his 40th birthday, Flix worries about his associates' loyalty and confronts Pacho. The Expo Dinosaurios arrives in Mrida on March 3. the boardwalk will close for triathlon, take your precautions, These are the challenges that Mazatln has in the face with the real estate boom, Despite stalled legalization, Marijuana producers in Sinaloa are still making plans for a legal global market, The most dangerous municipality in Mexico, Murders, kidnappings, and Extortion, American citizen sentenced to 21 years in prison for drug trafficking in North Carolina, Lopez Obrador wants narco-linked witness to testify against Calderon and Fox, The National Civic Front in Mazatln call for a protest against Plan B of the Electoral Reform in Mazatlan, More than 3 tons of garbage removed from the beaches during Carnival, The expansion of Santa Rosa Avenue is coming. As a result of this capture, information was obtained from more Russian people involved not only in drug trafficking but also in human trafficking. A report by Mexican news outlet La Reforma, from earlier this year, indicated that at least five cartels are now operating in the Riviera Maya and reports of violent crime in Tulum alone had gone . Fifty-one of the kidnappings in Veracruz happened in the month January, Alto al Secuestro reported. I feel extremely safe here, said a Dutch expatriate, who just closed on a home in the area. The kidnapping surge in Mexico is fueled in large part by the insatiable US demand for drugs. Crespo and Valdez [] Kidnappings for ransom accounted for 81 of the investigations, 10 cases had no ransom demands, and 25 cases were virtual kidnappings. The message threatened death to merchants who refuse to fork over bribes to the drug-trafficking gangs and was signed by Los Pelones the bald ones.. The Mexican government has failed to combat kidnapping, and police are sometimes involved in the abductions. The U.S. Department of State issued a travel advisory for Americans visiting Mexico last year, saying to exercise increased caution due to crime. Jose was taken by kidnappers in central Mexico over a year ago. 7.8 (1,562) Rate. Not only the rich and famous were vulnerable but also the majority of the population, Gomez, the professor at the Naval Postgraduate School, told me. Two men who were also there with them were killed and the women were sexually assaulted, he said. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. Copyright 2023 MarketWatch, Inc. All rights reserved. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Reducing your risk of kidnapping in a high risk destination. While the states with a record of zero kidnappings were: Baja California, Campeche, Coahuila, Durango, Nayarit, Quertaro, San Luis Potos, and Yucatn, said Miranda de Wallace. The hot spots (or hot zones) in the country (Map: Infobae Mxico) In the aforementioned period, more than 4,491 murders were registered in the largest source of alarm in the country: the Guanajuato-Michoacn area - disputed mainly by the Jalisco Nueva Generacin Cartel, Santa Rosa de Lima, and the United Cartels -, and in where the National Guard has a permanent presence in 22 percent of . We have other figures that dont coincide (with those of Alto al Secuestro), Garcia said. Its the highest across Mexico with the State of Mexico (Edomex) and Mexico City reporting 63 and 32 kidnappings respectively. American photographer John Sevigny was kidnapped while visiting the city of Cordoba in the Mexican state of Veracruz, where violence and crime is on the rise. Sometimes kidnappers hold their captives longer in order to demand more money from the victim's relatives or associates. The Gulf Cartel also has cells in some border towns in Texas, and alliances with mobsters in Italy. Reynaldo Marquez Crespo, 41, and Jancer Sergio Ramos Valdes, 33, both Cuban, face 35 years in prison on charges of alien smuggling and kidnapping. That has put me in the crosshairs of governments, gangs, and cartels., MEXICAN MAYOR GUNNED DOWN DURING HIS FIRST DAY IN OFFICE. According to a message from the victim on social media, the events occurred on 32nd avenue, near the Nuestra Seora del Rosario church. In fact, we were hardly bothered by anyone whose attention we did not want. Cartel violence, by gangs including the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (top right), has taken over tourist hotspots from Cancun to Tulum, Mexico, leaving foreign vacationers like Jennifer Henzold . According to the U.S. Department of State, 66 of these were U.S. citizens, 14 of these cases involved Legal Permanent Residents. Some sources claim that the local government is suppressing the extent of the violence in an attempt to protect the tourist industry. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Or Evansville, Indiana. The fugitive heir to the Max Factor cosmetics empire, Andrew Luster, was living a modest life in a Mexican seaside resort for about a month before he was caught by a . In its monthly report, the organizationAlto al Secuestrorecorded a decrease in the crime of kidnapping in Mexico. According to local news reports, a note was left with the body saying she was killed because her husband 'didn't want to pay' the ransom. The president of Alto al Secuestro highlighted that there was a 40 percent decrease in this crime between January and August of this year compared to the same period, but in 2019. In Monterrey Mexico a gemologist was kidnapped in 2014 while on a fishing trip. The city was . Reynaldo Marquez Crespo, 41, and Jancer Sergio Ramos Valdes, 33, both Cuban, face 35 years in prison on charges of alien smuggling and kidnapping. This is going to get a lot worse for you, Jennifer recalls one attacker telling her (she and Frank are both fluent in Spanish). Among the incidents that have most scared the South Californians has been the multiple homicides in Callejn Manuel M. Ponce, wheresix peopleweremurderedin a house. But their journey ended instead in Yucatan, each locked in a house and held for US$10,000 ransom. Yucatan kidnapping and killing of businessman. Gomez said there are now hundreds, and possibly thousands, of gangs of organized kidnappers. He said on Ciro por la maana that the rise in homicides and kidnappings over the past 80 days has shown that cartels and criminals are changing their tactics. I heard the kidnappers talking about working with local authorities about kidnapping people.. According to the advisory, "U.S.citizens are advised to adhere to restrictions on U.S. government employee travel." Christopher co-authored the book, Secrets Stolen, Fortunes Lost, Preventing Intellectual Property Theft and Economic Espionage in the 21st Century. He is the founder of Securely Travel. But . Help me! On Monday in a press briefing,Department spokesperson Ned Price said there were no reports to share on U.S. citizens being injured or killed in the incident. Aileen Teague, assistant professor at The Bush School of Government & Public Service at Texas A&M University,reminds people that while organized crime does exist in parts of northeastern Mexico, there are also "beautiful places that are dependent on tourism and relatively safe. State governor Carlos Joaquin called the recent beach commando raid a serious blow to the development and security of the state putting the state at grave risk. With turf wars increasing among rival cartels, homicides in the state rose from 145 in 2015 to 628 in 2020 a 333 percent increase in a place where 75 percent of the local economy is based on tourism, according to Mexican statistics. Reader support helps us keep our explainers free for all. Tenancingo, Mexico, widely considered the sex trafficking capital of the world, is the single largest source of sex slaves sent to the US, according to the US State Department.
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