Crime

Well TP......what you have read is not far off the mark at all, I keep up quite a bit with these type of incidents, from both media and live sources on the ground, not to mention you have lived it yourself. Crime is a problem in the country, and it is pretty much luck of the draw, you could live there 20 years and have nothing happen to you or you can just get off the plane and not be so lucky. The best advice is to be street smart, know the limitations and dangers of your environment and perhaps you might stray far from clear and present danger......Other than that your other option would be to move to a more secure part of the Island with better security and protection Ohhhh and by the way, it is already in Sosua....just keep your eyes open.

I've been here 11 years without issue,  but I do know others who have had problems.   Lots of things to be aware of:

You MUST be careful of who you associate with.  You are considered like them.

You MUST always be aware of your surroundings, who is around, vehicles etc.

Do not go out alone at night.

Do not go to specific areas -  there are areas in every town and city that are not safe, find out where they are.

DO NOT wear jewellery etc on the streets, you become a target.

Be very careful who you invite into your house.  you may trust one person but who is with them.......... and people talk all the time.

DO NOT flash money!!! I have watched men flash wads of money - you crazy???  You are looking for trouble.....

Do not brag about your electronics, your good job, your good pension etc around anyone. You do not know which person understands your language. You do not know who might casually mention this information to another..........

Live smart and under the radar as much as possible and you can avoid a lot of potential problems!  Also make sure you have emergency numbers in your phone and make sure someone knows where you are going (especially for us females)

Planner and Massagewiz two very good posts.  You are in a "third" world country and you do need to be cautious.

For me going on 10 years and did have a gold chain ripped off my neck by a moto on my first visit 12 years ago...knock on wood nothing since.

Bob K

3 months in the country and never witnessed anything threatening so far.

MP may your luck continue.  Just keep your wits about you and don't bring attention to yourself.

Bob K

Good for you,  keep it that way.  I have seen way too much and stay as far away as possible.

I live in a city that has a reputation for being very quiet. I leave jewelry home (for what I have, which is worth pretty much nothing), dress discretely, carry minimal money and maintain peaceful relationships with locals. So far so good, but I heard many bad things about Sosua. Non-stop traveller Andy Graham ("the Hobo Traveller") calls Sosua "the most dangerous city he's ever visited in the most dangerous country he's ever been to". How much of that is hype, I can't tell! Wandering in Sosua more dangerous than walking in Cité Soleil in Port-au-Prince, Haiti? More dangerous than Mogadishu, Somalia? I went to Sosua a few times and although I was certainly prudent, it didn't appear chaotic or dangerous. Maybe I was just lucky.

From the news reports I read most serious attacks are directed at individuals who are either:

- flashy / displaying wealth and costly objects
- messing with prostitution / drugs
- involved in shady activities
- grossly imprudent

I've read reports of foreigners having been mugged here and there, especially in Santo Domingo, Sosua and Punta Cana. I went to Santo Domingo once and it made me more nervous. Among other things, street lights take some time to switch to green making you vulnerable to attacks when your car is at a stop, engulfed in traffic.

Still I haven't seen anything alarming so I really wonder what this danger thing is all about. Can DR veterans such as you, Bob K, Planner and Gypsy, provide more detailed insights for the enlightment of everybody?

Clearly this traveller has never been to Detroit city - far more dangerous.  Or Haiti - far far more dangerous......... 

I find Santo Domingo to be reasonably safe if you follow the rules!   There are areas to stay away from.  Keep under the radar and just live your life.  Often it is a crime of opportunity - dont set yourself up to be the opportunity!

8 years in Sosua.   In the the 1st. month 2 minor incidents.   In one of them a ladrone had scaled a wall to my place on the 2nd. floor.   I was sleeping,  heard a noise,  opened my eyes & saw him going through a lady friends purse.   I had a monkey fist under my pillow,  quietly rose & hit him hard on his back.  Before I could strike again, he jumped off the balcony, screamed when he hit the ground & took off.   I was lucky.  2nd time was a burglary,  I wasn't home.  They broke some concrete balesters & stole a boom box and a small jar of coins.   Since then, never a problem.   It doesn't matter where you live, there are always some bad guys around.    Don't make yourself a victim, but be a victor.   Trust the advice of others.  avoid confrontations.  Never, never stop to help an an injured person.  You will be liable for them & all related expenses!!....  Sounds cold, but it is true.

@Gypsy

>Before I could strike again, he jumped off the balcony, screamed when he hit the ground & took off.   I was lucky.  2nd >time was a burglary,  I wasn't home.  They broke some concrete balesters & stole a boom box and a small jar of coins.

yes, that  balcony thing is the worry I have at the moment the front door is okay nice heavy metal gate,  but there is a balcony and I have sliding glass doors with no metal grill.  although they would have to smash the door glass to get in which would probably get noticed as there are many people around here There have not been any incidents in this block of apartments that I know of for a long time,  but it is still a worry, so trying to think of a way to make the balcony more secure. 
Know anyone who's got any landmines for sale? :-)

But seriously,Was thinking maybe some barbed wire across the banister of balcony or something just to make it a little more difficult.

Interesting, Gypsy! The first and only one time my house was burglarized was in Montreal. In my native city I also had multiple car break-ins. The first and only one time I had a friend attacked by thugs on the street was in Fort Lauderdale. The first time I felt threatened by thugs was in Lake Worth and the second time in West Palm Beach. If ladrones were to burglarize my house here in the DR, they can be my guest. The most valuable item I keep is probably my propane tank. Even my laptop is old, with a broken keyboard, and my data is automatically backed up on an external server every minute.

Good advice about not helping injured people. Also I heard in some instances people fake road accidents to make you stop and rob you. Don't know how often it happens here but in the USA it's not an unknown phenomenon on isolated roads.

In catalogs such as Smokey Mountain Knife Works ----- heartland America ------  Bud - K  ( not to be confused with Bob K)  they sell poppers.  A very loud type of fire cracker with a string on each end.  Pull on the string & BANG!   they could be mounted on your slider.  one end tied to a screw eye, the other looped over another for easy removal when you are home.    Use several, varying the string lengths so they go off in rapid progression.  Thief will think you are trying to kill him.   Of course you mount them on the inside of the door.  they are very cheap, less than $10 bucks for a bunch of them.  Naturally a gun loaded with Glaser rounds would be very effective if you are at home at the time of  the incursion.   Glasers is a great ammo.  It won't penetrate drywall or ricochet.   The bullet is hollow plastic filled with silicone & tiny b-b's.   They do the job on bad guys extremely well.   I spent 20 years on St. Croix.  A very crime ridden island.   I was a NRA instructor, range officer & carried a Walther PPKS with Trinjicon night sites.    I grew up hunting & fishing to help feed my brothers & sisters.   I am not a gun happy freak.   I just believe in the 2nd. amendment & the constitution as originally written.   Good luck to all you good folks, be safe & always aware.

A 410 gauge shot gun pistol, take the shot out of the cartridge and replace with long grain rice.

Since we are on the subject of crime/defense......what are the chances of purchasing a stun gun and bringing it to D.R??? Airport, courier, or barrel ship? Are they even legal? Would love to have one in the house just in case I ever needed it. The old louisville slugger is still the preferred method by Brooklynites, but would feel a bit safer with one ot two stun guns around

This is what the good old Brooklyn Boys use http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Steel-92BSS- … e+products

I believe stun guns can be purchased here but not sure.

You will have a hard time getting them through customs though.

Bob K

You won't be able to get a stun gun in.  And using it here is likely to get you in trouble

As to "2nd amendment rights" this is the Dominican Republic  and none of that applies my darling.....  Here who you know and how much money you have rules!!!!

Here are some of the best Tips I've read here over the last few months for safety: 

* Secure your home!
* always carry Mace(and have it on bed side table)
* keep a machete in the house
* do NOT go out at night alone if you are a woman and if a man, only to known, safe places for short distances
* stay out of rough neighborhoods
* keep your eyes and ears open with sobriety when in public
* do NOT wear jewelry of any sort or fancy hats/shoes
* don't be a sucker and fall into a trap, helping somebody you don't know
* don't discuss money, stuff you have and always assume that strangers are dangers
* lay low, don't party hard with a big mouth, if you go out, stay low key
* find some good Ex Pat friends that you can trust and utilize this Network
* join some Community Service Groups, like Rotary, and meet some nice, trustworthy local folks and pitch in to help

What are the Top 3 things that I forgot??

I would only add always appreciate your situation. You have great wisdom kind sir. Bless you.

Hola tp3813 !

I would personally recommend to stick to relievable sources of information and keep a positive mindset because if one keep focusing on the negative, no matter where you are or go, you will always find a reason to rain on everyone else parade

We aren't going to deny there is  a serious problem with violence in D.R. Once I was at the Blue Mall, I went quick to an ATM and could not get cash, then I went to the Timberland store to looked at some stuff, and a guy in his late 30s with a delinquent features was following me and I noticed he was up for something bad, I made eye contact and showed him I wasn't afraid and showed my fight response, and he disappeared. Everyone in the store noticed what happened and after that, I stopped using the ATMs in public places. Also another time I went to a Scotia bank there and the guard as soon as he sow me getting into the ATM, he did a very strange move and hide to talk on his cell phone and didn't stop looking at me. What you can learn of this is that some guards in the banks and those who work in the Video Surveillance Camera departments are accomplice of those who are targeting tourist. That didn't stop me for keep loving this amazing country.

I has also been stopped by the police several times, yes they look dangerous and most of them are corrupted, once you show them your international ID, they let you go.

My positive experiences there exceeded all my expectations.

Keep enjoying life in that piece of sunshine paradise !

Cheers

D.

DR is not a dangerous country if you compare it to cases like El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala and so on.... This is one of the safest countrys of Central America and the Caribbean.

@drtuttle >Hola tp3813 !

>I would personally recommend to stick to relievable sources of information and keep a positive mindset because if one >keep focusing on the negative, no matter where you are or go, you will always find a reason to rain on everyone else >parade

Dont worry, I am not paraniod, just like to keep up with latest happenings....when you have people being poisoned in bars, does make you think a little though how easy it could happen to oneself,..but on the whole would agree, DR is not as bad as many other places.
Think a lot has to do with luck, like when I was robbed in PP, think was just a case of wrong place at the wrong time. could happen anywhere.
But in future think I will not fight with robbers, got away with a slight cut that time, next time it might be a .44 Magnum..not recommended :-)

For some perspective on homicides in different countries and islands, I found the following statistics, 0 is no homicides and the highest is 90.  And I just picked a few, for all countries, you can google "world crime".

Honduras  - 90
Venezuela - 53
US Virgin Islands - 52 (Gypsy and I can both attest to this)
Belize         -   44
Jamaica    -    39
Colombia    -  30
Puerto Rico -  26
Brazil          -   25
Domincana  -  22
Mexico         -  21
Cayman       -  14
Haiti              - 10
United States -  4
UK                  -  1
Singapore      -  .2
Monaco         -    0

Homicides are just one measure of crime. It is not the whole picture either.   And it also depends on the definition of homicide that is used.

Metrics are metrics, no more and no less.  There is indeed a direct correlation between homicides and the overall crime rate.  These stats tell me that the DR is safer than a lot of Caribbean countries and since I lived in the USVI for 5 years with no harm, I'm going to feel just fine retiring on the North Coast.

Well put. Thanks for the stats good man.

Hi again

The Mexico's Citizens' Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice (a reliable source) recently published the list of the 50 mist dangerous cities on earth. U.S. qualified 4 of its cities to the list. The statistics are based on the murder rate collected in 2014.

For now we should not be too worried. Obviously those who have been a direct target of an assault or (Atraco as they say in DR) didn't realize they were traveling to a country with different living standards and didn't do their homework before starting their journey.

They use a very popular quote there "the fish dies by his mouth" ( el pez muere por la boca ) and this have a lot of meanings. In D.R. as elsewhere if you want to avoid food poisoning, gastro infections, etc you definitely need to take a LOT of health and hygienic measures.


1     San Pedro Sula      Honduras
2     Caracas      Venezuela    
3     Acapulco      Mexico    
4     João Pessoa      Brazil
5     Distrito Central      Honduras    
6     Maceió      Brazil    
7     Valencia      Venezuela
8     Fortaleza      Brazil
9     Cali      Colombia
10     São Luís      Brazil
11     Natal      Brazil
12     Ciudad Guayana      Venezuela
13     San Salvador      El Salvador
14     Cape Town      South Africa
15     Vitória      Brazil
16     Cuiabá      Brazil
17     Salvador      Brazil
18     Belém      Brazil

19     St. Louis      United States <---<

20     Teresina      Brazil
21     Barquisimeto      Venezuela

22     Detroit      United States <-----<

23     Goiânia      Brazil
24     Culiacán      Mexico
25     Guatemala City      Guatemala    
26     Kingston      Jamaica
27     Ciudad Juárez      Mexico

28     New Orleans      United States <-----<

29     Recife      Brazil
30     Campina Grande      Brazil
31     Obregón      Mexico
32     Palmira      Colombia
33     Manaus      Brazil
34     Nuevo Laredo      Mexico
35     Nelson Mandela Bay      South Africa
36     Pereira      Colombia
37     Porto Alegre      Brazil
38     Durban      South Africa
39     Aracaju      Brazil

40     Baltimore      United States <-----<

41     Ciudad Victoria      Mexico
42     Belo Horizonte      Brazil
43     Chihuahua      Mexico
44     Curitiba      Brazil
45     Tijuana      Mexico
46     Macapá      Brazil
47     Cúcuta      Colombia
48     Torreón      Mexico
49     Medellín      Colombia
50     Cuernavaca      Mexico

I'm not worried, neither judgmental

Cheers.

@Drtuttle

>For now we should not be too worried. Obviously those who have been a direct target of an assault or (Atraco as >they say in DR) didn't realize they were traveling to a country with different living standards and didn't do their >homework before starting their journey.

Well, that's a bit of a sweeping generalisation, saying everyone who's been attacked here has no clue about the country or didn't do their homework!

I was fully aware of the situation here and been to far worse countries than DR, but did not stop me getting attacked  in PP  - as I said in previous posts I think it's largely down to luck, you can spend 10 years here and have no trouble at all or 2 days and have a couple of thugs with knives or guns coming at you.

It's the old scenario -Wrong place at the wrong time... like that poor American guy the other day on Sosua Beach who drowned.  Only came to visit his daughter in Santiago, came down for a day visit to Sosua to enjoy the beach........ And ends up in the morgue!
Man, thats just so sad... But that’s how it goes sometimes, you never can tell  :-(

I read that story too TP very sad indeed, but I guess when your number is up, it is up 

Crimes of opportunity or  time and place -  well they happen everywhere.  Our point here,  take precautions to avoid becoming a statistic!   Don't get set up. Don't be in the wrong places.  Don't be someone they can easily target!

Understanding the language is critical.
Understanding the basics of the culture is critical.
Understanding who you are with and where is critical.

My building is locked up tight. Next to me and behind me is the family of the owner. No one else goes here unless it's family or friends of family. Additionally, I have two dogs in the apt. AND 3 stray dogs I adopted standing watch outside. It's a virtual impossibility a local is going to come into the place. They are all afraid of dogs.

When I go on walks day or night no one comes near me because I'm walking with a pack of dogs It's hilarious. Also, this part of town is super safe anyway. Maybe I'm just lucky to be in this situation and location but it's something to think about.

Another thing is this town is a regular town. Not a tourist destination or a gringo enclave which means that's where the money is for the locals to target. Just regular people here which translates to very low crime which is what you get in a regular city that's not too big and congested like SD or Santiago. It's a hidden little paradise

So true,  dogs are a great asset.  Unless of course you are targeted and they kill your dogs!  That has happened.   

And living in a non expat community has its perks!  I agree.

They might get the outside dogs. But not the inside ones. And they can't get all of us when we are in a pack. So, highly unlikely. They go after opportunity crime. All the dogs make the barrier to entry not worth it. It's not like there is much value inside anyway. These are not Ocean's Eleven type of criminals here

Living in a non-expat community is the entire point!

I agree on the dogs!  Definite barrier  - even a small dog deters them.   

And I did not come here for an expat experience, I came for the culture, the music, the Dominican way..... just not all of  it......    Some of it makes me nuts.....

Exactamente!

The key is to acclimate to the way of life here. Anyone who comes here thinking they will continue to live the exact gringo lifestyle they are used to always ends up irritated and disappointed. If someone acclimates and becomes a local, then enjoyment and fulfillment is assured!

@:Planner
>And I did not come here for an expat experience, I came for the culture, the music, the >Dominican way..... just not >all of  it......    Some of it makes me nuts.....

Yes, you are right. There are certain aspects of Dominican life which are a pain in the a**.  Feel that particularly normally on Tuesdays when there is no power all day and no water.

Plus were I live it is extremely noisy,  Dominicans just don’t care if they irritate other people with their constant loud music, the only volume setting they know is full blast.

Another irritation are these damn noisy motorbikes with the silencers removed or whatever up and down the road  day and night.  But the gringos are just as bad with their Harleys making the windows shake as they go past.

But what the hell, it’s the price you have to pay for living in the sunshine :-)

I just think could be in freezing cold Europe specially UK with their surveillance madness, with Big Brother CCTV cameras watching your every move.  Here I have not seen a camera in weeks and I like it, feels more like freedom :-)

So I put  my trusty old earplugs in and everything suddenly looks a lot better :-)

Ah, that reminds me of a story I saw a while back, it seems the Dominican government has  finally realised excessive noise here is a big problem and can make you ill and its now officially classed as a health hazard!

From what I read the police in SD and Santiago now respond to excessive noise complaints and are empowered to impose heavy fines or in some cases even confiscate equipment.
 
Seems like a bloody good idea to me, but I fear its an uphill struggle here, noise is part of the culture and you cant solve that overnight. 
We will see :-)
For the time being earplugs are on permanent standby :-)

Not only do the confiscate the equipment they are often destroying it!   Which makes me think they are getting a commission from the equipment vendors......