Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story
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2013-12-30 10:13 AM |
Champion 10471 Dallas, TX | Subject: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story If you haven't already read it... "Kidnapping" story. |
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2013-12-30 10:52 AM in reply to: KSH |
Pro 15655 | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story I'm trying to figure out why anyone would go to Mexico for any reason under the current political climate there. |
2013-12-30 11:09 AM in reply to: Left Brain |
Champion 10471 Dallas, TX | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by Left Brain I'm trying to figure out why anyone would go to Mexico for any reason under the current political climate there. I think going to Cozumel is a different situation than going to the interior sections of Mexico. I've went there for IMCOZ back in 2010 and felt completely safe. Here's my deal... unless someone actually kidnaps me, I haven't been kidnapped and I'm doing cr@p for them. Not at all. Come get me or shut the h@ll up.
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2013-12-30 12:30 PM in reply to: KSH |
Queen BTich 12411 , | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Ugh. Sadly, I'm not surprised. |
2013-12-30 12:37 PM in reply to: Comet |
Champion 10471 Dallas, TX | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by Comet Ugh. Sadly, I'm not surprised. That's horrible! So was this person physically kidnapped? The guy in the story was not physically kidnapped. He was just called and told what to do, and if he didn't do it they would hurt him. He never came in physical contact with his kidnappers.
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2013-12-30 12:40 PM in reply to: KSH |
Queen BTich 12411 , | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by KSH Originally posted by Comet Ugh. Sadly, I'm not surprised. That's horrible! So was this person physically kidnapped? The guy in the story was not physically kidnapped. He was just called and told what to do, and if he didn't do it they would hurt him. He never came in physical contact with his kidnappers.
He was held at the hotel by people who were not hotel staff, or the police. I don't remember specifics as to if he got moved, but he definitely got away to the airport without anything other than his ID. It's been a lot of years, sorry! The other 3 arrived back to Houston and told his parents before they were contacted by the people 'holding' him demanding ransom. They had managed to get away in a cab and my one friend didn't until a couple days later. |
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2013-12-30 12:56 PM in reply to: Comet |
Champion 10471 Dallas, TX | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by Comet
He was held at the hotel by people who were not hotel staff, or the police. I don't remember specifics as to if he got moved, but he definitely got away to the airport without anything other than his ID. It's been a lot of years, sorry! The other 3 arrived back to Houston and told his parents before they were contacted by the people 'holding' him demanding ransom. They had managed to get away in a cab and my one friend didn't until a couple days later. Ah, yes, horrible and scary! Poor guy. Worst nightmare! The article I linked to isn't a kidnapping like that. This guy was called by his "kidnappers" and told to do "XYZ"... "or else!" Which to me was a bit ridiculous. |
2013-12-30 1:41 PM in reply to: KSH |
Champion 7704 Williamston, Michigan | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story UGH So scary. Why on earth did he leave his hotel room? Having lived a stones throw from the mexican border I would not go across. When I was looking at houses there my hispanic realtor who was born on the Texas side of the border who is fluent in spanish said "We used to go across for a cheep steak dinner and some beers but we don't any more because its too dangerous" Good enough for me I am not going there if he is not!!! |
2013-12-30 2:06 PM in reply to: KSH |
Extreme Veteran 554 Maryland | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Poor guy, at least on a more positive note he placed second in his Ag. I can hope to be in that kind of shape at 72yo. |
2013-12-30 4:41 PM in reply to: yarislab |
Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story I've been to Coz 8-9 times, and will continue to go back. it is very safe there, I have no problems (nor does my wife) walking around town at all hours of the day or night, even back into the "hood" to get ice cream. I was suspicious of this story when I heard it but apparently there is a shred of truth. Cozumel is much different than even Cancun which is only a couple miles away by ferry. In general, the island is controlled by one family that tends to keep things like this from happeneing too often. |
2013-12-30 4:55 PM in reply to: ChrisM |
Champion 10018 , Minnesota | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by ChrisM I've been to Coz 8-9 times, and will continue to go back. it is very safe there, I have no problems (nor does my wife) walking around town at all hours of the day or night, even back into the "hood" to get ice cream. I was suspicious of this story when I heard it but apparently there is a shred of truth. Cozumel is much different than even Cancun which is only a couple miles away by ferry. In general, the island is controlled by one family that tends to keep things like this from happeneing too often. This has been my experience and my understanding of the situation in Cozumel as well. It is a world apart from the border towns. On my last trip I had a long discussion with the bartender at one place who said she left another Mexican city for the safety of Cozumel. Maybe I am naive, but I really believe this. |
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2013-12-30 4:56 PM in reply to: ChrisM |
Pro 9391 Omaha, NE | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by ChrisM I've been to Coz 8-9 times, and will continue to go back. it is very safe there, I have no problems (nor does my wife) walking around town at all hours of the day or night, even back into the "hood" to get ice cream. I was suspicious of this story when I heard it but apparently there is a shred of truth. Cozumel is much different than even Cancun which is only a couple miles away by ferry. In general, the island is controlled by one family that tends to keep things like this from happeneing too often. Thanks Chris, my wife and I were planning to do HIM Coz next year and stories like this don't help with the old confidence meter. |
2013-12-30 5:09 PM in reply to: 0 |
Resident Curmudgeon 25290 The Road Back | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story I was on Cozumel 10 days ago. I'm pretty sure if there was a high rate of these types of incidents there wouldn't be three or four cruise ships each disgorging their 3,000+ passengers on the island every day. There are areas in New Orleans that are probably much more dangerous. Now Juarez, even Tijuana, maybe not so much. |
2013-12-30 5:09 PM in reply to: 0 |
Champion 16151 Checkin' out the podium girls | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by Socks UGH So scary. Why on earth did he leave his hotel room? Having lived a stones throw from the mexican border I would not go across. When I was looking at houses there my hispanic realtor who was born on the Texas side of the border who is fluent in spanish said "We used to go across for a cheep steak dinner and some beers but we don't any more because its too dangerous" Good enough for me I am not going there if he is not!!! One of my trips to San Diego, I was chatting with the bartender. I was bringing my family in a few weeks and was considering a day trip to TJ. The bartender (a big, hairy burly dude I wouldn't mess with) said HE was afraid to go. We went to Coranado instead. Too bad; crossing the border used to be fun. Edited by pitt83 2013-12-30 5:10 PM |
2013-12-30 6:20 PM in reply to: pitt83 |
Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by pitt83 Originally posted by Socks One of my trips to San Diego, I was chatting with the bartender. I was bringing my family in a few weeks and was considering a day trip to TJ. The bartender (a big, hairy burly dude I wouldn't mess with) said HE was afraid to go. We went to Coranado instead. Too bad; crossing the border used to be fun. UGH So scary. Why on earth did he leave his hotel room? Having lived a stones throw from the mexican border I would not go across. When I was looking at houses there my hispanic realtor who was born on the Texas side of the border who is fluent in spanish said "We used to go across for a cheep steak dinner and some beers but we don't any more because its too dangerous" Good enough for me I am not going there if he is not!!! Total sidetrack as it's a whole host of other issues but yeah, Baja has gotten real bad and I wouldn't go down there anymore. That's not a drug issue AFAIK though. |
2013-12-30 6:25 PM in reply to: tuwood |
Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by tuwood Originally posted by ChrisM I've been to Coz 8-9 times, and will continue to go back. it is very safe there, I have no problems (nor does my wife) walking around town at all hours of the day or night, even back into the "hood" to get ice cream. I was suspicious of this story when I heard it but apparently there is a shred of truth. Cozumel is much different than even Cancun which is only a couple miles away by ferry. In general, the island is controlled by one family that tends to keep things like this from happeneing too often. Thanks Chris, my wife and I were planning to do HIM Coz next year and stories like this don't help with the old confidence meter. There's a few reasons I wouldn't do Coz 70.3 - hot (as in, the locals complani how how Sept is) and rainy - but not this. Coz is fantastic, let me know if you want any recommendations, including the best steak you will ever have in your life (coz is known for very good restaurants) |
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2013-12-30 6:25 PM in reply to: ChrisM |
Expert 900 | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by ChrisM I've been to Coz 8-9 times, and will continue to go back. it is very safe there, I have no problems (nor does my wife) walking around town at all hours of the day or night, even back into the "hood" to get ice cream. I was suspicious of this story when I heard it but apparently there is a shred of truth. Cozumel is much different than even Cancun which is only a couple miles away by ferry. In general, the island is controlled by one family that tends to keep things like this from happeneing too often. Cancun is more than a couple miles from Cozumel... You're thinking of Playa Del Carmen... |
2013-12-31 1:33 PM in reply to: 0 |
Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by RushTogether Originally posted by ChrisM Cancun is more than a couple miles from Cozumel... You're thinking of Playa Del Carmen... I've been to Coz 8-9 times, and will continue to go back. it is very safe there, I have no problems (nor does my wife) walking around town at all hours of the day or night, even back into the "hood" to get ice cream. I was suspicious of this story when I heard it but apparently there is a shred of truth. Cozumel is much different than even Cancun which is only a couple miles away by ferry. In general, the island is controlled by one family that tends to keep things like this from happeneing too often. I (wrongly I know) think of that entire area as "Cancun." I know it's not, but that's just the way it is. Been to CUN and PDC lots of times, they are both areas I dont particularly like and they blend together. Only good thing about PDC is you have to go there to go cave/cavern diving from coz Edited by ChrisM 2013-12-31 1:34 PM |
2014-01-01 5:44 AM in reply to: pitt83 |
Champion 14571 the alamo city, Texas | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Originally posted by pitt83 Originally posted by Socks One of my trips to San Diego, I was chatting with the bartender. I was bringing my family in a few weeks and was considering a day trip to TJ. The bartender (a big, hairy burly dude I wouldn't mess with) said HE was afraid to go. We went to Coranado instead. Too bad; crossing the border used to be fun. UGH So scary. Why on earth did he leave his hotel room? Having lived a stones throw from the mexican border I would not go across. When I was looking at houses there my hispanic realtor who was born on the Texas side of the border who is fluent in spanish said "We used to go across for a cheep steak dinner and some beers but we don't any more because its too dangerous" Good enough for me I am not going there if he is not!!! you do realize TJ and cozumel are on entirely different sides of the country? it's like saying you wouldn't go to a concert in austin texas because compton, in LA, has high gang crimes. |
2014-01-01 7:04 AM in reply to: mehaner |
Pro 6838 Tejas | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story A friend of mine had an incident there in the late eighties. Four of us guys were down there for a few days to drink and enjoy the scenery. We got pretty lit in Carlos and Charlies. Then it was off to the clubs and I believe it was Maya 2000 where we lost John. He had stumbled off to dance and we didn't see him again. My other friend had bought a souvenir photo of us all in Carlos and Charlies, so we wound up walking around for the next 2 hours showing the pic and asking if anyone had seen the guy in the picture. We wound up back at the hotel and just gave up, assuming he was having pizza with the girl he had been dancing with. About 430 AM he shows up banging on the door, broke and saying he needed money to keep from going to jail. He had been picked up by some guys in a van who threatened to take him to the police if we didn't give them 200 dollars. I thanked them for giving our friend a ride back to the hotel and shut the door. They knocked on the door a bit and eventually left. Next day we asked him what happened and he said he was in a drunken black out and did not remember even leaving Carlos and Charlies. He was on auto-pilot for about 7 hours and all he remembered was getting picked up by the van driven and around for a while. He was threatened with jail and he did give them all his money from his pockets. I guess they figured they could get more from us, but once we had him inside they were out of luck! That was the last time my friend John ever drank! Been to Cozumel more times than I can remember since that trip. I've stayed in the best and the not so good hotels. Been there on umpteen cruises and never had an issue since then. I love to run in CZM and have been on some remote roads a long way from the hotel and never once had a problem. The people there have always been exceptionally accommodating and friendly. My kids have spent more time at the beaches in CZM than they have at the beaches on the Texas coast ( benefit of working for an airline! ) and I wouldn't hesitate to go back with the entire family. |
2014-01-24 3:39 PM in reply to: KSH |
Veteran 268 Germantown, WI | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story I participated in IM Coz this year and had a wonderful experience. I never felt unsafe at any time while on the island. Very strange. If he thought the Police were out to get him, there is a military base along the run course that they were doing construction at the gate and there were always soldiers on guard there. He could have gone to the military if he did not trust the police. Despite this, as I said I always felt safe there and would not hesitate to go do the race again and plan on doing so in 2015. |
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2014-02-10 6:17 PM in reply to: KSH |
1 | Subject: RE: Ironman Cozumel... "Kidnapping" story Hi, you are totally right about the kidnapping situation. I’m from Mexico and I live in one of the most dangerous cities in the country. I really feel sorry about this issue. What this guy lived is what we call a virtual kidnapping, it’s more likely a kind of blackmail situation. Most of the times, the people calling are inside jails, locked out. They target people who get easily frightened by the threats. They start making questions and the victims in some cases are told to give names and contact numbers of their relatives. They are told to go to a different hotel, lock yourself in, don’t talk to anyone, and turn off any type of communication device. While this happens the “kidnappers” calls your family and ask for a ransom. The family can’t contact the victim (because he turns off every communication device) and agrees to pay the ransom. So as you can see they actually make a fool of yourself because they’ve never seen you not even followed you. When you are a victim of a kidnapping in Mexico you actually do get caught. I’m making this reply to help you guys to understand the situation. As you say Cozumel is one of the most beautiful islands and IM of the world. Cozumel and Cancun are one of the safest cities of the country. Crime is really controlled over there. As long as you don’t put yourself irresponsible in a situation with the wrong people, you should not be worried. You guys should take your chances in Cozumel, it’s really safe |
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