Jamaica is a violent country. If one should let themselves, they could just break down and cry at the situation. We the visitor to the island are so fortunate that we are not usually the victim. On a recent post, I was scoffed at when I told the story of my friend who had to move from his home in Flankers, St James after a woman ran into his front room and was murdered. He, indeed, thought that he and his family were "fi dead" as they were possible witnesses. "Fi dead" is a very common concern for anyone that is even in the vicinity of a crime. For years there have been assaults and murders in Negril and Westmoreland. A few have involved foreigners. Tourists, for now, can visit Negril and other tourist areas in Jamaica with little fear.Tourist are rarely ever the target of a violent criminal. They should certainly take care in choosing the area and time of day when they are out and about. Petty theft has always been a problem in Negril and it seems that the snatch and grab has become somewhat more familiar. If one keeps up with the murder cases in Jamaican courts, they can be, as I am, shocked at the disappearance rate of key witnesses. The conviction or even the arrest rate for rape and murder in Jamaica is unacceptably low. Indeed, there are occasions where nonjudicial "justice' occurs at the hand of law enforcement in Jamaica. Of course, this only fuels more violent behavior. Years ago, when Johnny Cash was robbed and his wife assaulted at his home on the island, the perpetrators only lived a day or so after being found by the constables.
hmm. I did, very briefly, see Las Vegas. I don't think I had consumed enough Red Stripes at that point.
The snatch and grab is involving tourists, when we were there 1st week Feb, a couple had to walk around a car parked oddly on side of road with hatch up, soon as lady came beside car man grabbed her bag, she instinctively pulled back, was thrown to the ground, when she looked up man had a gun, smartly gave up bag and car and 3 men took off. Took all of 15 secs, scarier part was happened 9:00 at night on middle of beach road with quite a few people around. Not trying to cause fear, just a heads up that even if not late or not desolate, things can still happen.
Rasthal, your story shows that a petty crime can quickly turn into a violent major crime.Really is there such a thing as "petty crime"? If the petty crimes are not addressed then more violent crimes will become more common. We should all take note of this report and minimize our exposure to the possibility of a snatch and grab. Do not carry purses or bags that can be easily snatched. When attacked, quickly give up the item that the crook has grabbed.
Update - 2 suspects are in custody related to the incident on Monday:
http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/News/...-held_18466464
Negril.com - For the vacation that never ends!
Great News
Read about some other crap on Facebook today, but will sit back and wait for actual confirmation before putting speculation up on the board. Hoping it is just the Negril rumor mill......
Glad to see that the Police are getting closer to serving justice for the Jackson family.
The snatch and grabs unfortunately happen all over the world, especially in developing countries. If you are new to a developing country you need to learn some basic precautions. One is do not walk around with a purse on the street. I wear a mellow backpack if I need to carry anything, which is much harder to get off a person than a purse. Dress down, leave the flashy jewelry at home, and do not flash money, and keep your money split up in your front pockets. Get a POS Digicel phone and leave the Iphone in the hotel safe.
Here's a story to make the cynics feel better:
A couple of weeks ago I was having a hard time connecting to the internet at Country Country with my Iphone, so I set it next to my wife at the bar and went back to the room to grab my Ipad. I returned to the bar with it and proceeded to spend a little bit of time taking care of some business back home. The couple we were with showed up and off we went walking down the beach. The next day the front desk alerted us that we left our phone at the bar and that the bartender and security man returned it to the office for safe keeping. $899 phone was back in my possession, bartender and security man were a little fatter in the pocket, and my vacation continued with no major incidents to report. Just like every other vacation I have taken in Jamaica.
I have met many more great people in Jamaica than I have bad boys. They are there, looking for opportunity. And there are Jamaicans there, looking out for you. Had I lost the phone I would have kicked myself in the ass, as it would have been entirely my fault. I certainly know better, however I was at such ease that I let my guard down.
Great post Booger....there are bad people everywhere but the majority of us are good. This thread should be titled "Be careful Everywhere"....some of the posts here are disappointing.
Ya Mon...Heading home
10/9-10/16 @ Idle Awhile & the Zoo!
3/14-3/21 @ The Zoo