Those who take frequent trips to
should be aware that criminal activity around the border has increased
dramatically over the past year, according to a recent advisory from the
consulate in
The consulate issued a “warden message” last month to warn
all American travelers of the increase in the crime rate along the border.
There were 22 kidnappings of American citizens this past year, twice the number
of kidnapping cases in 2006.
Though some of the victims were recovered, others were
physically abused and even killed. In several cases, ransom demands were also
made.
There is no apparent pattern to the kidnappings, nor are all
kidnappings conducted by the same criminal group, according to a statement from
the FBI Border Liaison Office in
Border Liaison Office Supervisor Eric Drickersen said in the
statement that there were few cases in which the target was randomly selected.
Charles Smith, a public affairs spokesman for the consulate,
said that the victims tend not to be typical tourists, but businesspeople with
dual citizenship.
Responding to the rise in violent criminal activity,
security around the border has increased since the beginning of the year. For
example, a new law enacted in January requires that travelers present a birth
certificate or passport when crossing the border.
The advisory encourages that people take precautions when
traveling in unfamiliar territory such as being aware of suspicious persons and
activity and letting others know their travel plans ahead of time.
“Our message doesn’t tell people not to come here,” Smith
said. “We simply tell people to use caution when they do come here. Don’t go
into unknown areas. Basically, use the same common sense you would use in any
given city in the
Although the kidnapping cases mostly involve older persons
with citizenship in both the
and
people not fitting into the target demographic should also be careful, Smith
said.
sophomore Alan Chin has gone clubbing in
a handful of times in the past year. He admits that
is not the safest of destinations, particularly for females who travel in the
group.
“I’m afraid that if I wasn’t around, that my girlfriend may
be raped or something else,” Chin said.
Chin is not the only UCSD student with reservations about
traveling across the border since the news of increased violent activity.
“In January, I went to
for my birthday, even though people told me not to go because there had been
shootings recently,”
“But my friends and I went anyway because we had already bought the tickets,
and because I went in a group it was more ok.”
Liou said in addition to traveling in a group, she and her friends
take other precautions to ensure their personal safety.
“No one walks to the clubs,” she said. “They take the taxis
because people know that it’s dirty and unsafe in
We try to stay in the area where students should be going.”
Club owner and promoter “Hollywood Ray” specializes in
transportation to and around
As the owner of the popular Coko Bongo club, Ray operates a successful business
driving students into
Before the implementation of the new passport law, up to 3,000 students headed
down to
Ray said that the safety of his customers is his primary
concern.
“Nothing’s going to happen to them,” he said. “If they stay
at the club, they’ll be fine. If they walk around in
like anywhere, you’re just asking for trouble.”
Ray said he was not particularly concerned about the
increase in kidnappings negatively impacting his clientele.
“The last thing criminals are doing is kidnapping students,
because they are worthless to them,” Ray said. “If they’re going to kidnap
anyone, it’s going to be a rich Mexican citizen.”
