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To start a debate about crime in Costa Rica, I thought it would be helpful to hear subscribers crime stories (if any) in Costa Rica. Please include details like location. Please share…..
Edited on May 22, 2008 13:13
I had my car radio stolen once outside a restaurant in San Jose about five years ago… But that also happened to me in London, Georgetown, Grand Cayman and New York City.
I also had a rocking chair stolen from outside the front of the home that I rented for a while in San Antonio de Escazu.
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comScott,
Thank you for your reply. Would you say crime such as theft is as bad in London, Georgetown, Grand Cayman and New York City as it is in San Jose?
I am NOT an expert in crime and some of the data is not that easy to find but I can tell you that I feel much safer in San Jose, Costa Rica than I do in London or in New York. The population of Grand Cayman is so small that it’s not really a worthwhile comparison.
As you will probably have noticed from some of my postings in this Forum (where crime has been discussed on numerous occasions) and in the tone of my articles, I don’t believe in featuring the latest bloody, gruesome stories on this site, I will leave that to others who seem obsessed with ‘crime’ on a daily basis.
However, I do want an open forum where people can discuss things freely and welcome our VIP Members feedback on this topic.
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comA few years ago, when my laundry was returned, I was missing a sock. Not sure if it was misplaced or lost but I guess whenever something disappears in Costa Rica, it is safe to blame it on rampant theft.
You guys made me laugh-loved the sock story and being scarred from that experience! However, last time I visited CR my camera was stolen from my checked bag. It could have happened in Ft Lauderdale or San Jose. That’s my only brush with a “possible” crime in CR & I’ve been to CR numerous times.
Here is a story that might interest you. http://www.thebeachtimes.com/article.php?id=2&at=1952
There are several airports in the US that have theft problems by baggage handlers. There just was another bunch that were caught recently, because one of their girlfriends tried to use a laptop that had a tracker program on it. My guess is it probably was stolen in the US. I’ve watched the baggage handlers in CR, when they load or unload the planes, a security guard runs a hand held metal detector over them.
Jaco. Tsk tsk. I guess the surest way to be robbed in Costa Rica is to hang around tourist towns and communities where large groups of rich Americans gather. Come to think of it, that would work in Miami too.
I had been warned a few years ago when I first started visiting CR that many times thieves would puncture your car tire and then position themselves further along your route so as to “assist” you. Of course, they would then assist you out of your belongings when you stopped.
One morning, as I was driving on a back road to Naranjo, a pedestrian walking on the opposite side towards me pointed to my car tire and signaled it had a problem. My first thought was that perhaps I was being set up. I pulled over and the tire was indeed flat. But the pedestrian didn’t come over to rob me. He came over to help me by directing me to a garage one minute up the road. Twenty minutes and $2 later, my punctured tire was plugged and the I was ready to continue my trip. It’s a great little country.
Sprite: I can’t believe you stooped to driving a car. What’s up with that?
Once again you missed the point…
“Apparently by coincidence, President Oscar Arias also called top security officials at the national level to meet the following day to discuss Costa Rica’s nationwide crime problems, saying he believed crime is the number one concern for Costa Ricans.
Mr Arias’ brother and Presidency Minister Rodrigo Arias, who called the issue “a national emergency,” said the government was going to “scrape the pot” to find extra funding for the nation’s police forces and the judicial system. “
Who cares what crime is like in Miami, we’re talking about Costa Rica.
Try to grasp the concept in these two statements Sprite:
1. crime is the number one concern for Costa Ricans
2. a national emergencyPS. I heard a pedestrian found a sock on the back road to Naranjo, what colour was the sock you lost?
vbcruiser, you are to kind to Sprite…..
“Sprite: I can’t believe you stooped to driving a car. What’s up with that?
Once again you missed the point… “
vbcruiser; Sprite not only misses the point, he misses the boat, train, plane etc…
You summed it up:
1. crime is the number one concern for Costa Ricans
2. a national emergencyvbcruiser, I just wanted to see if the folks that frequent this discussion board get it like you do, and obviously the Costa Ricans do….
I have lived in Tripoli, Cairo, Denver, Phoenix, Anchorage, Seattle and visited every major city between Saettle to Cleveland to Miami to San Diego. I have felt the least safe in downtown Miami/Little Haiti and New Orleans south an east of the Quarter, but the only crime I have personally experienced was in my own neighborhood appox. 50 miles N of Seattle (burglary). The only violent crime I have witnessed was in the Mission District of San Francisco (awakened by a SWAT team on the roof below my hotel for multi-hostage/murder situation in 1986)and downtown Denver (shooting seen from office buidingin 1983) @ 2:00 a.m.. I have never been concerned for my safety in any way in Costa Rica, nor have I ever experienced crime, but I also have excellent situational awareness.
grb1063,
Situational awareness is the key here. It is required everywhere but I feel less need for it in rural Costa Rica and in my little suburban Miami neighborhood than many other places I have visited and lived.
I am being told that I am missing the point. I don’t think I am. The original poster is soliciting Costa Rican crime stories the “point” of which is to stir up a debate on the matter again. I am always happy to oblige since that is the best way to understand the mentality of a segment of North Americans who come to Costa Rica. It is also a good way to air the subject.
Scott does well to let the subject be discussed ad infinitum. It may be the main concern of many people who are thinking of living in CR. It should be ONE concern but, in my humble opinion, not the main one. There is an entire culture and language to master for many of these people. I don’t believe crime is an important part of this culture as some have stated. And I don’t believe it should even be a main consideration.
So let’s see how many people have personal stories of being a victim of crime in Costa Rica. Let’s see how much consequence these stories carry. Let’s see how much it may have effected their lives and decisions to live in Costa Rica. No anecdotal stories, please. Only personal incidents. I suspect the bottom line of this thread will be inconsequential for anybody who is seriously considering moving here.
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