Police Extortion

sorter55555 wrote:

Short version: Motorcycle cop pulls us over. Wants 800 pesos for a "ticket." He wants me to put the pesos in a notebook he handed me so no one sees the cash. I thought Merida didn't have so much of this nonsense. Is this common? What other types of extortion can I expect?

That depends.

Did you do anything wrong?

Did you break any traffic laws?

There's a big difference between the guys who will try and get something for nothing and those who will stop you legitimately and tell you to pay them directly.

When you say motorcycle cop, I'm assuming you mean a local policeman and not some sort of federal cop?

Most local policemen in Mexico don't make squat, and the only way they do manage to make a living is by "purchasing" the rights to a specific area.

Then, if they make a legit stop based on something a person has done wrong, they decide whether they want to take you into the station or just have you pay them directly.

I haven't been everywhere in Mexico but from what I understand, that dynamic is pretty common throughout the country.

That's different from the guys who will stop you when you haven't done anything wrong and they attempt to extort money from you anyway.

That may not make a difference in the way you feel when you're stopped and asked for money, but the first example (when you've actually done something wrong) is just considered the cost of doing business, and even preferable for people who don't want to get involved with the local police station.

sorter55555 wrote:

If it was legitimate, why have me pass the cash hidden in his notebook? I started to hand the cash to him directly and he quickly indicated to use the notebook.

Respectfully, I think you're missing the point:

Police who stop you for a legitimate reason often choose to have you pay them personally, collecting an amount similar to a fine that would be paid at the police station.

It's how they survive, otherwise they would be paying for the opportunity to work a particular route but be unable to recoup any of that money.

Travellight is giving you good advice:

If it really bothers you, you can demand to see what the infraction is and even request to follow them to the police station and pay there.

Personally, if I knew I did wrong, I'd like to see the beat cop get to keep the fine.

That may sound crazy, but it's my way of recognizing the reality of life in my adopted country.

Wishing you mucho happiness 😎

MexicoAfterlife wrote:

You did something wrong and got caught.  And instead of you having to do the hassle of a ticket he had you pay him directly.

Things work different is different countries.  Get used to it and move along.  You got your 10 minutes of drama now move on.

You couldn't possibly miss the point more.
Whether or not I did something wrong is irrelevant.
You got your jollies trying to bad mouth me from whatever emotional deficiency. Are you happy now?

sorter55555 wrote:

If it wasn't extortion, why did he insist I hide the cash in his notebook?

Because this is traditionally done discreetly.

Would you prefer that an announcement be put out on the nearest public address system?

Or do you just want to pay up where cam footage might pick up the exchange from your hand to the hand of the officer?

It's not very different from a church where you put your offering in a plate or a KFC bucket or in the donation box by the door, instead of walking up to the pastor or priest and putting the cash in their hand.

If you are truly being extorted (the demand for money without any consideration whatsoever) in Mexico, you will know it.

Hopefully you'll never find yourself in that situation because that can really be some scary sh*t.

Remember, in the future, just demand to go to the police station and you'll end up paying the same amount of money and you'll spend all of that time going to the station and returning to wherever you were stopped (and probably some extra time at the station waiting to have your payment formally processed) but you will come away with a feeling of having done the "right" thing.

Whatever floats your boat...

MexicoAfterlife wrote:

Ok then just show the world what a USA "Karen" acts like lol. We tried but it's obvious you will never understand. Good day.

That's clearly projection.

Good riddance.

First Last wrote:

Atta boy. Typical cop answer. A little paranoia goes a long way to justify "they gotta be guilty" if thy were stopped.
And I gotta right to hate certain aspects of MX life and remain here. Hmm, makes me wonder why you live in MX. It's admirable, if you left your country of origin because you hated it...lol.

I said nothing of the sort. Some people can't read. I ask a simple question and several people give me vitriol and a knee jerk defense of cops when they couldn't possibly know one way or the other.

richnsteve wrote:

jeesh, this conversation is exhausting.. It's Mexico dude, you happened to get pulled over and had to pay a whole $40 under the radar to not have to go "downtown".. i've never had an issue there neither as long as you dont stick out and stay under the radar (i.e. don't act like an American).. dont buy drugs from someone you don't know or trust neither, could be undercover and shake you down for a hell of a lot more..

Again, really as nothing to do with what I've said or asked about. Don't know why you bothered.
However, this sense of "It's Mexico dude" that several people want to espouse for some reason I just don't understand, is stupid. You found a way to feel defensive??? I don't care if it's Mexico or Timbucktu, it's bad policing.

First Last wrote:

Atta boy. Typical cop answer. A little paranoia goes a long way to justify "they gotta be guilty" if they were stopped.
And I gotta right to hate certain aspects of MX life and remain here. Hmm, makes me wonder why you live in MX. It's admirable if you left your country of origin because you hated it...lol.

Good points First Last. I keep wondering about the accusations staying so consistently the same and quite consistent about assigning blame yet not able to remember what the initiating action was. Somehow we as a group have been of the same opinion. The one and only question seems to be, do we accept the extortion accusations claim?    or help with how to deal with the problem and learn how to live in a new country.

travellight wrote:

I keep wondering about the accusations staying so consistently the same and quite consistent about assigning blame yet not able to remember what the initiating action was.

If you had read and understood post 4 you would know all that is completely off base.