Crime in Negril

[Oncedeported]

While this will not stop me from going. (spent a lot of time in Honduras, Murder capital of the Americas) I believe that some members are so concerned about standing up for and supporting the place so dear to their hearts (and mine!) that they incorrectly make people believe that they are very safe in Negril. While it is very safe for street wise people such as myself and most of the regular boardies, to wander about , my concern is for the AI crowd that are convinced by people here that they will b fine off resort. If they were street wise people they would have wandered around on their own already. Here is a quote from the gleaner 1 month ago
"Westmoreland appears to be the new epicentre of crime in western Jamaica, as while the parish has fewer murders than St James, it tops the list in both the seizure of guns and ammunition - 13 guns and 260 rounds of ammunition."
Those guns and ammo were only from one police sweep.
Along with the killings of roots owner last year, death of Gino several years ago, A few (unconfirmed but very publicized )rapes near (sorry Gail) treehouse and the robbery recently of fellow boardies, this should b stated, warned of, and reminders of how to keep safe, should be regular fodder on this site. That said I am still coming with Wife and 2 beautiful daughters (6 and 9)in less than a month! And staying off AI. Lets help all people make the right decisions about vacations. Match their life skills, street abilities, and awareness with the proper suggestions that will help them feel safe. And warn them accordingly.

[Flipadelphia26]

Hadn't heard about the rapes and murders.

[Rob]

Oncedeported,

Living here, I can tell you with no reluctance that the entire community of Negril and the surrounding areas are pleased and grateful with the police sweep last month.

The police sweep you are referring to was done specifically for the reason to deter crime in Westmoreland. The police have been hard at work all summer stemming what had been taking place, to continue to keep Negril a safe destination to visit.

The police targeted certain individuals and communites (not just Negril) in the large Westemoreland parish and did their job with the community sweeps and have gotten those 13 guns and ammunition off the streets. In addition, they eliminated some of the bad guys responsible for this situation.

We are all grateful for their dedication to this effort. They have been doing the sweeps island wide all summer and should be commended for their efforts.

As for the few events you mentioned, they have taken place over nearly a 10 year time period.

Gino, the owner of Mariposa was a good friend of mine and he died in 2005, nearly a decade ago. This in no way was a tourist related incident and was of a more personal nature. No tourists were involved and was directed toward Gino, a business owner in Negril. This issue has been discussed on various threads here on Negril.com

Ted Plumber, also a hotel owner in Negril and a personal friend, arrived home during a robbery at his home in Caudwell, Hanover, not Westmoreland, in June 2012. It occurred about 40 minutes from Negril and has no tourist related aspects to it. No tourists were involved and was once again directed towards the business owner. The perpetrators were apprehended. This tragic event was discussed on a thread here on Negril.com the day after it occurred.

Any visitor to Negril, be it an AI visitor or boutique hotel visitor can learn nothing from these events that happened 7 years apart, other than the fact that they occurred. The visitor's behaviour or experience would be irrelevant in either of these events. And both these events have already been discussed here on Negril.com.

As for the rape you mentioned that happened in June of 2011, this tragic event did NOT occur near the Treehouse, but on an area of the beach far past Treehouse. The perpetrator was identified and caught. But to once again spread misinformation is unfair to Gail, Treehouse and anyone reading this incorrect information.

It was not discussed here due to the privacy requests from those involved, but was discussed at length on TA. Here is the response that Bnewb, one of TA's local Negril Experts, posted in that thread:

"Sorry, I did not get back to this earlier...but I do have a life here in Negril and do get busy....and since I live here and am fortunate to have many strong, reliable connections...I do know the facts! I do not play with rumor & speculation and do not play in the game of who thinks they know the most...this is way to serious of an incident. As a woman living in Negril...I take this very seriously, probably more so than any visitor coming to Jamaica.

And, from what I've seen and heard on the internet there is much misinformation ie. incorrect information being posted about this incident. Incorrect dates, wrong locations, resorts being named that are no where near nor have anything to do with the incident, and false and misleading details.

Because of the privacy requests from the people involved...it is not my place to give any specific details...but the added reminders to keep your wits about you, stay out of isolated areas at night and walk in lighted locations is probably the best thing to come out of this terrible event."

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic...h_Jamaica.html

Lisa, (Bnewb) is correct in her advice to all visitors to Jamaica to stay out of isolated, unlit areas at night.

And in the most recent thread about the robbery that took place, warnings about not using random route taxi as well as not walking in unlit areas were given to everyone as a warning. Here is a quote from one of my posts:

"There is a system that has been put in place by the Jamaican government and JTB to directly serve the needs of those visitors to our beautiful island.

I can no more recommend that visitors use the route taxi system, which was designed with the local populace in mind than I can recommend walking through the unlit areas of the beach at night.

It is simply not wise advice."

In summary, this site is constantly giving safety tips to visitors to Negril, regardless of their "street wise" status. Even those who feel they are seasoned travelers can still make unwise decisions.

But Negril is genuinely a very safe place to visit, even for new visitors or AI guests exploring Negril for the first time.

[gailnegril]

While this will not stop me from going. (spent a lot of time in Honduras, Murder capital of the Americas) I believe that some members are so concerned about standing up for and supporting the place so dear to their hearts (and mine!) that they incorrectly make people believe that they are very safe in Negril. While it is very safe for street wise people such as myself and most of the regular boardies, to wander about , my concern is for the AI crowd that are convinced by people here that they will b fine off resort. If they were street wise people they would have wandered around on their own already. Here is a quote from the gleaner 1 month ago



"Westmoreland appears to be the new epicentre of crime in western Jamaica, as while the parish has fewer murders than St James, it tops the list in both the seizure of guns and ammunition - 13 guns and 260 rounds of ammunition."
Those guns and ammo were only from one police sweep.
Along with the killings of roots owner last year, death of Gino several years ago, A few (unconfirmed but very publicized )rapes near (sorry Gail) treehouse and the robbery recently of fellow boardies, this should b stated, warned of, and reminders of how to keep safe, should be regular fodder on this site. That said I am still coming with Wife and 2 beautiful daughters (6 and 9)in less than a month! And staying off AI. Lets help all people make the right decisions about vacations. Match their life skills, street abilities, and awareness with the proper suggestions that will help them feel safe. And warn them accordingly.

Not at Treehouse I accept your apology.
Haappy Holidays!
Gail Jackson

[captaind]

I was in Negril the morning that the sweep was taking place and as a long time (on and off) Jamaican resident I was very pleased to see the police and army.

Linston and I both commented on what a good thing it was to see.

Cap

[Fred Stripe]

New York City was happy last year because they only had 450 Homicides ??????

[Hussyband]

Yep. There is crime in negril.

I live in what would be deemed a fairly decent area, good home prices, high employment, good schools. I would not walk some of the back roads where I live though, for fear of the crazy meth heads that are out literally everywhere.

There is crime everywhere, and even though I have experienced it first hand, I'm still booked (and paid for, so it's not just lip service) for my 2014 holiday in negril.

[dash]

"Re: We made it to the rock
Ive spent 1 year in Jamaica and 2 seperate six month trips backpacking through Mexico Guatemala and Honduras and was never robbed or threatened. BUT was swarmed and robbed in Charolette NC, and robbed a gun point in Chicago! "
That was a quote from you, Once Deported. You then decide to take a grain of truth and create a forest of worry, and associate good establishments to these events. Guilt by proximity. I, like you have not been robbed or threatened in all my Jamaican travels. I attribute that not to my superior street wisdom but to the very good people of Negril who have done kind things and steered me in the right direction while even in a drunken Rob Ford stupor. When you can speak of individual crimes with names and details it is a testament to the lack of crime against tourists. In the US and even Canada the multitude of crimes against persons are so common we can't remember the names or details. We become desensitized. In Negril it bellows. Hotel, Restaurant and Shop owners cringe at one overly publicized crime against a tourist and the resulting exaggerated second or third hand accounting. It affects their livelihood! " Warn them accordingly" you say? Please do. Without embellishment or exaggeration.

[Flipadelphia26]

I was impressed to see they only found 13 guns and 260 rounds. There's currently more of both in my house right now. My grandfather who has passed on was agin enthusiast. My brother who is shacking up with us for a bit is as well. I now have both collections under my roof :-p

[chi-town]

A person can find themselves a crime victim without making any unwise decisions. People get robbed and we shouldn't blame that on some mistake they did or did not make. I have noticed more crime in negril and have talked to folks that live there that have noticed the same thing. That being said I think there is more crime everywhere. But the days of walking from the beach to the west end at 4:00 am are over for me. I am glad that at least we can talk about it on this board. And I agree with all the safety tips. Just don't become complacent.