“PRACTICE WHAT WE PREACH!”

As the controversy continues to swirl between the Mexico City Fathers and Bank Administrators as to who will foot the bill for providing police protection for the banks and their customers and recent indications that some bank employees may have been behind targeted robberies of selected customers who had just withdrawn significant sums of money, we must not lose sight of the fact that some policemen may still be very much a part of the overall bank security problem itself.

Case in point: Saturday morning, 4 May 2002, I made a withdrawal from the ATM in the foyer of the Banamex branch at Paseo de las Palmas and Sierra Gamon, Lomas de Chapultepec. I’m usually pretty cautious when making such transactions, but initially felt somewhat at ease because there were two uniformed Federal Preventive Police (PFP) officers standing on the corner above me and a Miguel Hidalgo blue and white patrol vehicle parked in the Bital branch driveway right next door. The Banamex was still closed and I was the only customer in the foyer. Upon leaving I noticed that one of the Miguel Hidalgo police officers from the patrol vehicle was now at the public pay phone on the sidewalk immediately between the two banks and he seemed to be having a conversation with someone while glancing in my direction. As I left I made a mental note of that event and registered it as “somewhat suspicious.” As I sped away I did not detect anyone following me that I was aware of – especially not a marked police patrol vehicle. As I headed north out of town on Avenida Insurgentes Norte near Indios Verdes and approximately 15 minutes after I left the bank, I was hailed by a Gustavo A. Madero blue and white patrol vehicle with two policemen inside. I initially ignored their signal to pull over, but they persisted and I then pulled over to the curb right by the next exit after the Calle Montevideo overpass. The police patrol parked behind me and the driver approached my vehicle and insisted that I lower my window, which I initially did not do. He became a little agitated, but I was more agitated. He did not have his revolver holstered, but very visibly stuck in the front of his belt. I did lower my window about two inches to hear what he had to say and he began to tell me in a raised voice that the reason they stopped me was for an “Operativo Especial” (I bet!). I immediately showed him my cell phone and advised him that I was a North American citizen and intended to report this “Operativo Especial” to the U.S. Embassy right away. He became flustered and asked me my name, which I gave knowing that he’d never be able to spell my surname without assistance. He mockingly shouted my name at least three times to his partner who remained with the patrol vehicle and also told him that I was a North American who was about to report the “Operativo Especial” to the U.S. Embassy. The officer who was talking to me then asked if I wanted to know what the “Opérativo Especial” was all about before I called the Embassy and I replied in the affirmative. He said they were only checking Vehicle Identification Numbers (using the word “VIN”) looking for stolen vehicles and that if I wanted to take his name and badge number and report that to the U.S. Embassy that was fine with him. He then called out the last five digits of my “VIN” to his partner, thanked me for my time and said I could go. I admit I was purposely belligerent with the officer and was so because I suspected their true intentions – verified somewhat by the fact that I was never asked for my driver’s license or “Tarjeta de Circulacion” or any other valid ID or proof of vehicle ownership. Of course, they really backed off when I started to demonstrate to them that I wasn’t going to do this thing their way.

Later that day on the way home, I passed by the same Banamex branch where it all began and saw two uniformed PFP officers talking to two civilians in front of the Bital branch and decided to get their take on the incident. The two civilians turned out to be plainclothes Mexico City Police Detectives who advised that they have recently became aware of incidents similar to the one that I experienced that same morning and that I should consider myself lucky that I stood up to them and got away with it – without being robbed or otherwise intimidated. When I advised them that I did not detect a marked police car following me, one of the detectives said they probably used an unmarked car to discreetly track me using cellular phones to communicate ahead and that I was probably being remotely “escorted” by the tracking vehicle to be turned over to the marked patrol unit designated to make the stop. The detectives seemed surprised that the “stop” took place in Gustavo A. Madero Delegation, meaning that starting from Miguel Hidalgo Delegation, I was also tracked through Cuauhtemoc Delegation before being actually stopped by a marked patrol vehicle in a third delegation. To them this meant that these kinds of police-related attempts at robbery are widespread and somewhat sophisticated in terms of communications and logistics between corrupt police operatives.

As Senior Consultants we often give advice to expatriates as well as our Mexican clients on how to correctly deal with attempts by the police to coerce and intimidate to rob or otherwise solicit bribes. It seems I did well in practicing what we preach. So here’s a “free” security awareness tip for the entire group: If you are stopped by the police for any reason other than an obvious traffic violation, you should courteously, but firmly, question the policeman as to the exact nature of the alleged violation; do not open or lower your window all the way; do not turn over any personal ID or vehicle documents – let them examine them through the glass – and tell him you are going to call your embassy, family or company lawyer now – whatever suits the situation – to hopefully make them go away. Do not get out of your vehicle nor let anyone get into your vehicle. Be prepared to drive away immediately upon their signal.

As far as using ATMs and other banking facilities are concerned, always be aware of who may be watching you, including uniformed police officers. Never count your money in public – take a chance that the cashier or ATM probably gave you the correct amount. If using an ATM or banking facility in a shopping mall, always go through several stores before accessing the streets. If using an ATM or banking facility on the public main, check your surroundings before leaving and walk quickly away with an air of confidence. If accosted by someone asking you the time or directions or any other distracting ruse, ignore them and continue to walk away. If in your car, drive away rapidly and do not allow anyone to cut you off. Allow sufficient space between your car and the car in front of you that you can see the rear tires of that car touching the pavement. This will allow sufficient space to maneuver around them in case of an attempted blocking assault. If stopped by the police as I was, do what I did and get out of there as soon as possible.

Good luck to all!

Tom Cseh