www.CostaRicaTicas.com

I see one huge difference in the MO that these subject coppers used that is completely different from the usual 20K colone shakedown. They put the gringo in the car. Normally the cops just look at your papers, complaing about them not being legal or you not having your passport on you. They never want to go to your hotel and see your passport. They just want 20K colones! They NEVER put you in the car and drive off with you.

So, my thought would be: NEVER GET IN THE CAR! I think that avoiding this would be VERY difficult. Carrying a cell phone and asking if you can call the US Embassy, having a pen and paper to write down badge numbers, names and car number are all good suggestions and might deter them. IF they give you the opportunity! There is nothing than can stop them from denying you these things and just driving off with you! I would suggest that traveling with a wingman or two or three at that time of night might be about the only thing that might keep you from being a victim of this scheme.

These guys really suck and we need to bring them down!

_________________
Women are like beers. I've never had one that I didn't like. Just some that I like more than others! --Western

Wow, I must have led a very sheltered life. I have spent time in all of those cities including 20 years living in the suburbs of one and 25 years in another and have never been shaken down by the police in any of the 5.

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

I was never much of a choir boy, ID.....what can I say.....other than I didn't do it; it wasn't my fault; it's not mine, I'm holding it for this guy who asked me to....No....I don't know his name other than what I told you Officer ......Where did I meet him? Well....I guess I didn't ....he just asked me to.....I have a very trusting face......

_________________
"Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the over-compensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand."
- Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Ch. 16

Guess that explains it. Not exactly a "choir boy" but things like "it's not mine, I'm holding it for this guy who asked me to...." was never something I needed or wanted to have explain to the man.

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

Uncle.....Uncle......white flag done been raised brother man! I'm reformed. I grew up. I got old. (maybe I got smarter too....). By no means did any officer of the law simply stop me like is being discussed here.....I was youngER.....

However, it's still pretty common in Chicago to stick a $50 bill in with your driver's license when you get pulled over on a traffic infraction. Don't hate me.....

_________________
"Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the over-compensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand."
- Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Ch. 16

Maybe you misinterpreted, maybe you didn't, but with all my zillions of lines of writing you sure missed a lot if all you got was my criticizing the amount of money in his wallet. Sure that was part of it, but I also commented about how:

he could have pointedly noted the cops' ID's or police car number before just letting them force him into their car.

once he was in the car and driven to a remote and dangerous area it was understandably more difficult for him to stand up to their pressure.

I couldn't be sure I would have handled being trapped in such a high pressure situation any differently (locked in the back of a cop car under the threat of being released to by mugged).

even if he did do something that increased the likelihood of his being shaken down to this degree, that didn't mean he deserved what happened to him or that the COPS weren't the ones primarily responsible.

and my comments covered much more than any of the above, but I'm not going to repeat myself any further

I agree that you're allowed to share your opinion, I'm allowed to share mine. But that goes both ways. I've been expressing my opinion which differs from yours and I've been criticizing some of the actions under discussion. But I've never said anything to indicate that others didn't have a right to express an opinion different from mine. Instead I've been saying things like "I would NOT be the one to say one approach was definitively right or wrong." or "I was just offering my own thoughts on what you should have done. Everyone else is free to agree or disagree." While some others seem to be questioning not only my conclusions (their right) but even my basic right to express any opinion even slightly critical of the victim.

I'm sorry that this poor guy just got kidnapped and robbed by the police and nothing justifies the cops actions but that doesn't mean that the victim didn't also make some mistakes or that, given that this thread was intended to serve as some sort of lesson, we ALL can't discuss our different views however critical they might be. ICSA "gets it" - "So what's the point of this whole thread ? If anyone doesn't want comments and or suggestions, then there in no point in starting a thread topic. " Its unfortunate that more of the rest of you don't seem to want to allow that and just don't seem to get it. But if you don't get it by now, you probably never will, so this will be my last attempt to try and clarify what I've been trying to say or in trying to defend myself on the matter.

"If you don't know me by now/ You will never, never know me at all" and
" You've made your mistakes/ Lord, I've made mine too"
Thank you, Billy Paul and Mick Hucknall.

_________________
"A man accustomed to hear only the echo of his own sentiments, soon bars all the common avenues of delight, and has no part in the general gratification of mankind"--Dr. Johnson
"Amen, brother"-ED

Great point! Safety in numbers. Since there is nothing we can do about this, and the government certainly isn't doing anything, about the only thing we can do to protect ouselves is to not be alone in the streets, especially at night. And even if you're with a chica, you are essentially alone, especially if she's somehow involved in the robbery or in setting you up.

This wouldn't be too hard either. Go to DR/SL with a buddy and after both of you make your selections, come back to the hotel together. The key is NOT to be alone in the streets at any point. The cops won't Phuck with 2+ people because that greatly increases the risk of them getting caught. These fuckers look for "easy" targets. I don't mean easy people, I'm talking about the situation (one person, no witnesses, etc).

Wow. What a thread!

There's a lot of thoughts, opinions and ideas here, on both sides of this issue. But IMHO, the bottom line is.... This is phucked up. It doesn't matter where, why, how or when it happened. The bottom line and undisputed fact is that - IT HAPPENED ! Thanks to the original poster for telling us about this unfortunate experience.

Be careful out there guys.

MG

_________________
You ALWAYS have an option ....... "NEXT" !!!

It is a tough situation.If you haven't been there, you would not know.I have been put in the back of a police car in Tijuana, Mexico once.I was walking about three blocks alone from one well lighted well known area to another.TJ policia put me against the wall.Found a Viagra tablet in my pocket. Ended up being driven around for an hour by the local gendarmes.
Along the route they picked up several homeless and drunk folks to join.Some coughing excessively. Some bleeding from head/facial wounds.
So what did I do?What would you do?

In the interest of living to fight another day, I buckled. Paid the shakedown artists $60 for something not illegal.But I was not done. Went to the office of internal affairs for TJ police. Spoke to the head honcho.He gave me his business card and some useful tips.Well worth it and was subsequently stopped 130 times when living in TJ.Paid only $10 for running a stop sign on a near deserted road.

Doesn`t the fact of what we are, a monger, and where we are, the Gulch, in and of itself make us a target? For one thing, the cops know you came to town with a stack of cash to spend. They also know that such a person is less likely to squawk about a shakedown, or appear credible if they did than say an ecotourist. "Why did you come to Costa Rica sir?" To bang putas is the answer, and no matter what you say, any cop, any official is going to know, and that just makes you less sympathetic, the legality of the activity not withstanding. That`s assuming you are coming from or staying at any known mongering spots. They all know, especially if the Del Rey is involved. Grabbing a guy near the Rey walking with a puta, well, that`s just perfect. They don`t like you number one, number two you are up to no good in their mind, and less likely to make any kind of beef about it so the cop steals the prey, takes the cien instead of the chica.....

P.S. Traveling in groups is a good idea and thanks to Mad German for sharing his experience.

This all goes hand in hand. The law is that a tourist is required to carry his passport at all times. It is reported by I.D. that this law has been revised. Now you can carry a photo copy of your passport along with a photo copy of the entry date stamp. If you ever have a problem get a hold of I.D. He is a witness to these hearings. He will probably also tell you if you travel places like the beach or other towns in CR, you should have the original with you. In cases like Bob, that has enough sense to take a Taxi both ways, has a slim chance of being checked. You should alway be within a stones through of your original. Or I would say no further than a mile. For 10,000 colones I am sure that most cops would take you there.
I have seen this little cop car before. They hang out where the pimps and where the street walkers with dicks hang out. Not a good place to be at night
If you like San Jose. Move here.
SORRY TO HERE SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPENED. I'M GLAD YOU REPORTED IT TO CRT. AND HOPE EVERYONE WILL BE AWARE

_________________
DO WHAT YOU LOVE AND LOVE WHAT YOU DO

Sr. Seahawk, are you saying that you must carry your original passport at all times

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

I heard something about 4K Colone in the video. Mariscar was a nice place to eat years ago, but lately they have been terrible. They have tried to overbill me on at least 2 occasions. Now there isn't anyone that understands english there either. I think CR may be off my list for awhile. DR or Colombia seem safer, am I wrong?

_________________
"You can only keep a secret between two people if the other one is dead." Ben Franklin

While you and I rarely agree here is the facts from the State Department. I'll include the link below.

Documentation Requirements: Visitors are required to carry appropriate documentation at all times. However, due to the high incidence of passport theft, tourists are permitted and encouraged to carry photocopies of the datapage and entry stamp from the passport, leaving the passport in a hotel safe or other secure place. However, as noted under CRIME, Costa Rican immigration authorities conduct routine checks for illegal immigrants, especially in bars located in downtown San Jose and in beach communities. An American citizen detained during one of these checks and carrying only the copy of the passport will be required to produce the original passport. Tourists should consider carrying their passports when traveling overnight or a considerable distance from their hotel. Tourists who carry passports are urged to place them securely in an inside pocket.

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_t ... _1093.html

_________________
[url=http://www.amishrakefight.org/gfy/]