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Today's LaNacion.

Five assailants entered strongly this morning at Hotel Samasati in Puerto Viejo de Limon, locked about 18 tourists in a room while they stole his belongings, including a sum of nearly $ 6,000 dollars.

According to the Judicial Investigation Organization (OIJ), the attackers went straight to the rooms in which they were tourists who apparently were all Americans. Besides money, stolen cameras and belongings of the victims.

At the time of the assault, he was the guardian of the hotel.

The subjects fled with the stolen goods, but not before popping the tires of vehicles that were in the parking lot and car-jacked hotel owner.

The Red Cross reported that moved to one of the tourists to the local clinic in Home Creek, which is two kilometers from the hotel, with a blow to the nose.

OIJ investigators are at the scene investigating the incident.

This is a damn shame. Have their been similar incidents before or since? I ask because CRT has a friend who's a hotelier there (Colinsito at http://www.bananaazul.com/ ). Wonder what the local perspective on all this is?

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"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

The grammar is awful in the original post.
Is that a computer translation?

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It is cheaper to pay now and get it over with.
It is also easier to get them to leave.

Been a few. One was a little later then my OP (yes my OP was google translated but it got the point across) this spring when the nicest hotel on the Atlantic side in my opinion, owned by one of the biggest hotel conglomerates in the world, said screw this after they got hit. I think it was like 20 km or so south of Limon, nice beach, nice property. Here's the story:

http://insidecostarica.com/2013/04/05/h ... ty-threat/

I also remember about the same time two of the major cruise lines quit stopping in Limon as a port of call after passengers got hit while ashore. Never could really figure out why they stopped in Limon in the first place. Further down in S Caribe of CR, si, (I know, they can't because no sufficent dock) but really, Limon? These Cruise Ship co's were advertising Limon as a cool port of call? I'd stay on the ship which has to be 20x nicer then Limon.

After all that happened, the US State Dept and Canada issued statements on their travel web pages commenting on the increase in danger on the Atlantic side. Still on those sites.

And after that, I think in April 2013 there was the int'l news of the murder of Jairo Mora, a Tico environmentalist who patrolled the Limon area beaches at night to prevent turtle egg poaching. Some poachers who knew him laid a dead palm tree across his car's path, then eventually beat and killed him. But, what wasn't really widely reported was that he also had 4 gringa/Europa eco-tourist volunteers in his four wheel SUV who the poachers then kidnapped and subjected to very bad things in an inland shack.

OIJ made arrests like 6 weeks later. The geniuses, after their crimes, had been using the victims cell phones. Took time for OIJ to put the case together for which they took heat in the CR press for a quicker resolution, but the cell phone data was the solver. I think OIJ did it right, wiretapping them, and eventually charging 5 or 6 dogs from Limon. We'll see what happens in the CR criminal courts where anything is possible.

I presume you saw the news this last week of the CR 3 judge court ruling in the manslaughter retrial of the hotel security guard who shot in the back and killed a 16 y.o. K*D from Kansas on a high school tour in a ridiculous fact pattern about entering the hotel property late, two years ago. First court found the security guard of voluntary manslaughter, 15 year sentence. Then, the CR Appellate court ordered a new trial. 2nd trial court last week said it was the K*D's fault he got shot, more or less, or brought it on himself. Still in the news so google it and you can read the whole story and decide for yourself.

Same thing on the Pacific side about Cruisers docking in Puntarenas--not the danger like Limon, but what a nothing Port of Call. Tourists have to be getting back on the ships in either of the above ports thinking "why is everyone raving about CR?" (I know I know, no other ports on either side set up for ships that big, but shoot, take CR off your ports of call until there is.)

Same thing on the Pacific side about Cruisers docking in Puntarenas--not the danger like Limon, but what a nothing Port of Call. Tourists have to be getting back on the ships in either of the above ports thinking "why is everyone raving about CR?" (I know I know, no other ports on either side set up for ships that big, but shoot, take CR off your ports of call until there is.)

Yeah - 1st time I went to CR was on a cruse ship; docked in Limon, and we went directly on a bus to San Jose based on the recommendations of, well everyone - now I might be inclined to spend the day in Limon

In any case, ships dock where they can, and docking is much preferred to anchoring out but will agree with you about both cities mentioned in your post.

Post more, DGD - you have been on break long enough!

I've never been on a cruise so I didn't realize that you had that much time in a Port of Call to take a 2+ hour bus and tour and then return. SJ? Wouldn't be my choice. A 1.5 hr bus down down to the S Coast area might be a better idea. I think if I knew, I'd just stay on the ship.

The passengers that got robbed were both in the Limon area, one group got nailed out in some banana plantation, forget the other scenario. Was an article in one of today's CR e-papers showing the reduction in cruise ships visiting Limon for 2011-2012, down about 35% from 2009-2010. CR is blaming it on the older pier, dock, whatever you call it.

That happened in Puerto Viejo de Talamanca... not Puerto Viejo "de Limon."
A few years ago, PV and surrounding villages were nice places to hang out. Sorry to hear that crime is getting the best of this little paradise.

life is getting tougher everywhere and to think we can just go wherever we want and be safe just isn't reality.
not making excuses for thieves but when people have nothing to lose...

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im way deep into nothing special
riding the crest of a wave breaking just west of hollywood

[quote="LAdiablo" but when people have nothing to lose...[/quote]

they ask for a happy ending.. si?

Did you have a ' free day

You hit that on the head LD.

Local police (not OIJ) are a non factor in most of rural CR, and most people are really poor in most parts of rural CR, often living in shacks. And then add the joke court system.

Adding all that together, it is completely understandable robbery/burglary/stealing is rampant. Shoot, they steal from each other, including families. That's the norm.

For example, the turtle egg poachers are selling the eggs for $1, that's huge money for them. Mora, the young eco-tico the poachers killed on the beach in Limon this spring, was working for a privately funded turtle protection association that was paying the banditos a sum to not steal all the eggs. That's how he got killed--too many poachers wanted in on the cut and the money wasn't there. Yet super eco minded CR doesn't have the money to put police, who they pay about 300 bucks a month, to patrol crucial turtle migration areas 2 months a year?

One of my long lasting memories of CR police, and other long time guys can chime in because they will have to remember this front page foto from a long time ago on Diario, the gorey favorite daily newspaper of most Ticos. Some small town got pissed off at 1 of the 2 cops in their town so they hog tied him. That was the front page foto. I'll bet he was just trying to be the real police.

So was this on the Atlantic side or the Pacific side--I have been to CR several times and know there is a PV south of Limon and I think the other PV is in Guanacaste??

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I AM a Cien boy + Propina!

This is Puerto Viejo de Talamanca well south near Panama on the Caribbean side. The other Puerto Viejo (de Sarapiqui) is to the north on the Sarapiqui River in Heredia province.

Limon is not the prettiest place but go further south and it's great. A very unappreciated area. I am from Chicago. Limon is not as bad as it sounds. The area is one of the only places where you can still smoke pot at the bar.

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I am NOT a Cien Boy!!

Agreed Whitecat, it used to be one of my favorite spots in all of Costa Rica with the biggest problem being a lack of hotels with A/C (it gets HOT down there). However, now days, the entire Atlantic coast with the notable exception of Tortuguero has gotten so dangerous, can not recommend it to anyone. Seems almost once a week I see something in the news about something bad happening over that way, usually to tourists.

Never forget one of my trips to Puerto Viejo...was with Pac55 on a border run. We went "downtown" to watch the Dallas Cowboy game on TV and just have a night out. Of course, at that point, we were both on the lookout for any "action". Sitting at the bar, a beautiful girl walks up and sits down. She was stunning in a bikini top and shorts. Next thing I know, she pulls out a bag of weed, asks the bartender for a paper which he promptly supplied and started rolling one up. When she gets done, I see the opening I've been waiting for and in Spanish, compliment her on her rolling ability. She didn't even look at me, just picked up her joint, lit it and walked out. One of my more embarrassed moments to date in CR especially with Pac55 watching my lame attempt at picking up a non-working local.

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The only thing that matters is happiness in all it forms...

too funny PVT. and you probably were hoping to get faded as well.
the fact that you find that embarrassing is hysterical too.
i would need to write a book on how many times shit like that happened to me.
mr. smooth goes south.

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im way deep into nothing special
riding the crest of a wave breaking just west of hollywood