Pickpockets in Madrid
Sep 29th, 2004, 07:27 PM
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Pickpockets in Madrid
We recently learned that the presence of pickpockets in Madrid had dropped substantially during the last 6 months due to the unusual appearance of the Policía Nacional (National Police) in the city for something other than a national emergency (ETA). It seems that the residents of Madrid finally reached a point and decided to rid the city of this blight. Has anyone had any recent experience in this area? We where there last Thursday and Friday and saw a number of the blue uniformed Policía Nacional on horseback around the Plaza España and other busy areas of the city. Quite a difference from last year.
Sep 30th, 2004, 01:03 AM
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Agree with Top Man - recently there and my friend very small zippered purse _ and believe me this was not any easy to open purse was unzipped and the money she had in there was lifted - truly amazing pickpocketing technique as my friend said all she was vaguely aware of was a woman standing too close to her at signal crossing while she was waiting to walk across an intersection.
Always be careful and watchful - divide up your money and cards and if possible leave the passport securely locked in a safe in your hotel room unless you need it to convert money - then keep it in a money belt or wallet under your shirt secure.
Always be careful and watchful - divide up your money and cards and if possible leave the passport securely locked in a safe in your hotel room unless you need it to convert money - then keep it in a money belt or wallet under your shirt secure.
Sep 30th, 2004, 04:54 AM
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dont feel too comfortable with that. follow the usual precautions about carrying your money and credit cards and wearing jewelry.
one place to cautious is the internet cafe when you are writing your emails home,,,make sure to keep your purse or wallet secure.
enuff said, have a nice trip
one place to cautious is the internet cafe when you are writing your emails home,,,make sure to keep your purse or wallet secure.
enuff said, have a nice trip
Sep 30th, 2004, 10:58 AM
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was just there on business a few days and took a lot of public transport... saw them all in action. it is shocking.
cannot warn people enough.
i am not paranoid but am so frustrated knowing how many people will have part of their vacation ruined by such mafia /immigrant/national, whatever .. trash out there that doesn't even get locked up when "caught".
i mean, when it turns out that the famous terrorists of march 11 were being observed t the village house where the bombs were fabricated,for several days until the 10th of march, and not investigated more nor questioned because the civil guards ( our national top police) figured they were "just illegal immigrants" and hadn't seen anything UNUSUAL.
(for illegal immigrants i guess).
go figure.
and we ask why things are the way they are?
the word has spread about the spanish judicial system.. and they are ALL coming down here.
we are surrounded DAILY by stories.. and just have to learn to live with it until someting happens judicially to put these guys AWAY.
let's cross our fingers..
and make a huge noise if you are approached by these guys/girls/ladies.
cannot warn people enough.
i am not paranoid but am so frustrated knowing how many people will have part of their vacation ruined by such mafia /immigrant/national, whatever .. trash out there that doesn't even get locked up when "caught".
i mean, when it turns out that the famous terrorists of march 11 were being observed t the village house where the bombs were fabricated,for several days until the 10th of march, and not investigated more nor questioned because the civil guards ( our national top police) figured they were "just illegal immigrants" and hadn't seen anything UNUSUAL.
(for illegal immigrants i guess).
go figure.
and we ask why things are the way they are?
the word has spread about the spanish judicial system.. and they are ALL coming down here.
we are surrounded DAILY by stories.. and just have to learn to live with it until someting happens judicially to put these guys AWAY.
let's cross our fingers..
and make a huge noise if you are approached by these guys/girls/ladies.
Sep 30th, 2004, 11:54 AM
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Spain and the rest of the EU will not be able to rid the cities of pickpockets because they are overrun with immigrants from the old Eastern Block countries and South Americans, principally Columbians, who tend to be highly aggressive. Gypsies have always been around and are very good at lifting just about anything out of your pockets, but at least they are not aggressive.
The city of Pamplona tried locking up known pickpockets, or asking them to leave town, during the fiesta a few years ago, but the court told the police must first have evidence against them to hold them and ordered everyone released until they committed a crime and where caught. Very few where caught.
As a result of Spain's being a democracy and a member of the EU, pickpockets have grown in number the last few years and can be expected anywhere there's a crowd. Although there was a noticeable present of Policía Nacional around Plaza España last Thursday and Friday, it didn't make me feel any safer and I was exceptionally doubtful when I was told that the city had cleaned them out. Good PR, but only wishful thinking.
The city of Pamplona tried locking up known pickpockets, or asking them to leave town, during the fiesta a few years ago, but the court told the police must first have evidence against them to hold them and ordered everyone released until they committed a crime and where caught. Very few where caught.
As a result of Spain's being a democracy and a member of the EU, pickpockets have grown in number the last few years and can be expected anywhere there's a crowd. Although there was a noticeable present of Policía Nacional around Plaza España last Thursday and Friday, it didn't make me feel any safer and I was exceptionally doubtful when I was told that the city had cleaned them out. Good PR, but only wishful thinking.
Sep 30th, 2004, 03:16 PM
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a bit hard for anglophones to pronounce but.. SOCORRO!!! (help) and LADRÓN,..easier to say (thief) ..or MI BOLSO!!!( my bag).
you could always try "POLICIA."
hopefully you will never need to.. but... at least, like a firedrill, if we think about how we will react, maybe if it ever happens to us, we will have a better chance...
i am still knocking on woood.. but afraid my time is (statstically) getting nearer!!!
you could always try "POLICIA."
hopefully you will never need to.. but... at least, like a firedrill, if we think about how we will react, maybe if it ever happens to us, we will have a better chance...
i am still knocking on woood.. but afraid my time is (statstically) getting nearer!!!
Oct 1st, 2004, 02:22 PM
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Robert,
You should check both your spelling abilities as well as prejudice. It's Colombians and not Columbians and I don't think you can say it's immigrants fault only. When I was in Sweden five years ago, we had a camera robbed in a train full of blond Swedish people. When we reported it to the police, they said it was probably a Swedish person who did it and it was probably because of drugs. Criminality is tipical of large cities and Europe is no different than anywhere else in the world. But let's not say that criminals come from Eastern Europe or South America. You probably know that this is a much more complex issue and it involves several social conditions.
In summary, beware everywhere you go!@
Daniele, from Brazil
You should check both your spelling abilities as well as prejudice. It's Colombians and not Columbians and I don't think you can say it's immigrants fault only. When I was in Sweden five years ago, we had a camera robbed in a train full of blond Swedish people. When we reported it to the police, they said it was probably a Swedish person who did it and it was probably because of drugs. Criminality is tipical of large cities and Europe is no different than anywhere else in the world. But let's not say that criminals come from Eastern Europe or South America. You probably know that this is a much more complex issue and it involves several social conditions.
In summary, beware everywhere you go!@
Daniele, from Brazil
Oct 1st, 2004, 05:30 PM
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Good point Danielle. There are frequently comments on these threads like "it's this or that immigrant group" or "it's the gypsies." In the one instance that someone attempted to pickpocket me in Europe, the culprit was a teenage blonde girl in Amsterdam. How often do you see "beware of teenage blonde girls?"
