Rosie gets the story, all of it!

[Kenny]

For me, and in a most way's, nothing has changed. Most of us have all been saying "it's going to happen, it's only a matter of time". Knowing that was true, my antenna has been up for some time, and it's been the same for most with common sense. Is it more dangerous after it happens, or knowing something like this, or worse, was going to happen?

Kenny

Sorry Joe, if you need help with that idea, send me a private, and I'll explain it to ya.

 

[rockyptjoe]

Yeah we love Rocky Point but we are done with it for now, too much crap happening that they brush under the rug. We had planned on a may, november and December trip all have been cancelled. THEY NEED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE SAFETY.....

We each weigh risks versus benefits on most things we do.....you have to take care of your family....and I'm not going to tell you that you are foolish or wrong. However, worse stuff happens to more people and more often in Phoenix or Tucson. As long as I am informed of the true risks, I can be prepared and take additional precautions. Now, if we start having continual gang shootouts in Penasco, with innocent bystanders getting shot, then I will say goodbye!

 

[Terry C]

<<<We’ve since been in contact with the other victims >>>

I WONDER IF THEY WILL COME FORWARD...

What happened to the story of the 3rd time this 'a' ( person ) was jacked?

 

[waterkids]

We went down with our kids on New Years eve. NO police presence at all. I wrote about it that weekend. Not on the way or back on Sunday. It took THIS long for the facts to come out that a car was SHOT at? And another

possibly happened the week before these two incidents happened?

We own in RP. I feel pissed that this info is being hushed up in the media. People have a right to make a choice on what type of risks they are willing to take with their family. Whoever is telling D not to let people know

is out of line. I love RP and hate to see the economy hurt more also. I don't love it enough to get shot at with my kids in the car.

 

[playaperro]

<<<We’ve since been in contact with the other victims >>>

I WONDER IF THEY WILL COME FORWARD...

What happened to the story of the 3rd time this 'a' ( person ) was jacked?

I agree with you Terry who gets their vehicle stolen twice and then gets Jacked...Why was the wife driving the jacked car? Did he forget his glasses...Whats up with these people?

 

[jerry]

Fords.......you just can't trust people that drive fords.

 

[waterkids]

It would be nice to know what happened to the sentence that referenced another occurrence a week earlier. It was in the original link and not now.

 

[waterkids]

My mistake, it is in the next to the last paragraph.

 

[InkaRoads]

I am glad that we heard it first hand instead of the typical "hear say" that goes around scaring everybody, special Thanks goes to "D" for coming forward and letting us know of the what, where and when, most of us know the why's and possibly the who's, and I do have to disagree with many of you, the police is not "just hiding it under the rug", sorry don't remember exact words! in all the cases that they have, if you look around or read your home town papers, you also will realize that your own home town Police force is not only fighting crime but fighting the times and trying NOT TO lay-off any more cops!!.
Just because it is Mexico :mexico: and they are having a war on drugs hundreds or even thousands of miles away from PP, does not mean that they have enough man power to cover all areas, unfortunatelly for many of us, however I have noticed that the amount of army patrols or naval police has not decrease and actually seems that they are doing it more often, unfortunatelly they can not be in two places at once as most of us would like to have it, in comparacense to many, as already mention :deadhorse:, PP is as save as any other town/city or safer!!

 

[rockyptjoe]

Just a thought on what we can do to give us some amount of protection.....

Most of us have cell phones....if you have ATT or T-Mobile, your phone will work on the Telcel/Movistar networks (all GSM). Verizon claims they now work....based on their "history" in Mexico, I wouldn't depend on them!! If you don't have ATT/T-Mobile, pick yourself up a cheapo gsm phone....get it unlocked, and buy a Telcel Sim card (about $15 USD)and use the Amigo (prepay system....100 peso increments). There are signs posted along the road to Penasco with the "emergency" phone number....066. Cellphone coverage on the road from Sonoyta to Penasco is pretty good....I didn't find many dead spots. Learn a few phrases in Mexican and be aware of what KM (kilometer) marker you are at.....

I don't know how fast of a response you'll get...but it's worth having the tool available!!!

And if that doesn't work, carry a bucket of roofing nails to throw out if you're being chased!!! Maybe a couple molotov cocktails would also help since we can't carry guns!!!

 

[Stuart]

There's still some important information missing from these reports, mainly the type of vehicles involved. Why does that matter, you ask? Because the type of vehicle "D" was driving was a large crew cab 4-wheel drive truck. The type of vehicle the other "British" folks were driving was also a 4-wheel drive vehicle. I do not know the years or makes of either vehicle, just that they both fit this profile.

The vehicles were what was being targeted, not the families. Large, 4-wheel drive trucks are the preferred vehicles for transporting loads of drug/human cargo across the border. These guys needed a vehicle and did not give up until they got one from the 2nd family.

A Lexus or a minivan is useless to these guys. So is a Jeep for the most part because of its limited space to carry a load. They need large pick-ups or SUVs like Suburbans with 4-wheel drive. They don't want your Nissan, Toyota, or Hyundai car. If you drive a car, your chances of being carjacked as happened in this incident are slim-to-none. If, like me, you drive a large 4-wheel drive vehicle (I drive a F250 crew cab with 4-wheel drive and an off-road package), definitely keep your eyes open and your guard up. That is exactly the type of vehicle they are looking for.

On the upside, it's much more difficult to physically stop or take these larger vehicles because they are built like tanks. I have no qualms about running somebody off the road in this situation... provided I don't have a bullet in my bubblegoose. The story "D" tells of being able to physically evade these guys proves my point. They don't want your money, your belongings, or your children. They just want the vehicle. Personally, I wouldn't let mine go without a fight, but that's me. Realistically, if bullets are flying, the best thing you can do is pull over, walk away from the vehicle and let them have it.

 

[rockyptjoe]

Thanks for the additional info Stuart...that definitely sheds more light on the subject! I wonder why the vehicle types were not listed in the report????

Although I have one of those "tanks", mine isn't 4WD.....but like you, I also wouldn't think twice about running one of those carjackers off the road....

My one concern about "letting them have the vehicle"....what prevents them from shooting you anyway?

 

[Stuart]

My one concern about "letting them have the vehicle"....what prevents them from shooting you anyway?

Nothing. But, chances are they're not going to do that. They just want the vehicle. Also, I wasn't suggesting you stand there and hand them the keys. Just stop, leave the vehicle running, and take off into the desert a short ways. They aren't going to waste time tracking you down.

 

[deep blue]

I think the best course of action is for US travellers to RP to come up with a plan for their own safetly. I suggest there be a designated meeting point for people who want to caravan together in both Sonoyta and RP.

I was hoping to get at least a few responses to my post (#13). So any feedback at all? Good idea, bad idea, effective, pointless? What do people think?

 

[rockyptjoe]

If, and that's a big IF, I want to caravan with someone, I'll latch on to a vehicle right at the border. It would probably be a big truck/suv. They are more likely to be traveling at the speeds that I want to go. You're likely to wait for a while at an "organized" meeting place to get the 5-6 vehicles, and then there will be a mix of those who will want to be speeding (going more then the 90 kmh), and those following the speed limit. So...what speed will the caravan travel at? Does anyone remember when those large rv caravans would come down or leave Penasco...the Good Sams', or whatever the groups were....you wuld have almost a mile long group....usually crawling along at the 90 kph spped limit (54 mph), and driving the rest of us up the wall. It was a bear trying to pass...hop-scotching over a few at a time!!!

 

[playaperro]

Oh they only needed a truck that day, and they know who they are, and they could of told us that when it happened and chose not too. Well thank God I don't have to worry because I drive a 1970 maverick. See ya on the Malecon...

 

[Roberto]

, just that they both fit this profile.

The vehicles were what was being targeted, not the families. Large, 4-wheel drive trucks are the preferred vehicles for transporting loads of drug/human cargo across the border. These guys needed a vehicle and did not give up until they got one from the 2nd family.

QUOTE]

I am pretty sure that this was not an organized, cartel supported hijacking. I think is was an isolated incident and the thieves were some jackasses that needed money and took the vehicle to San Luis to a chop shop and 4wd gets more money for parts. Remember that the ID was found thrown out on the highway. SAn Luis has always been a hot bed of chop shops. There is a market for passports and IDs. especially if you are moving people. The cartel guys don't need to call attention to themselves with this kind of activity and I bet they are not particularly happy about it. They routinely drop $30K for a new vehicle if they want one. They don't want to move stuff in a stolen vehicle which may be watched for and noticed on the road risking delivery. They don't want to cause a frenzy of enforcement activity along the border looking for hijacked vehicles that interferes with routine transport. They don't want to call attention to their movements. They prefer to move their goods across the border quietly, if caught they lose money in cost of goods and no profit. Most of the goods are transported on foot or up until recently in large trucks.

The Mexican military are now stopping and electronically examining virtually all of the large northbound trucks, causing huge delays in deliveries. Trucks are backed up 5 or 6 miles taking days to pass. This is Meridia money from the US. Produce and other goods are in short supply in Hermosillo as a result. There is more cartel interest in the Carribbean routes as a result.

None the less it's a horrible tragedy for the victims.

 

[Kenny]

, just that they both fit this profile.

The vehicles were what was being targeted, not the families. Large, 4-wheel drive trucks are the preferred vehicles for transporting loads of drug/human cargo across the border. These guys needed a vehicle and did not give up until they got one from the 2nd family.

QUOTE]

I am pretty sure that this was not an organized, cartel supported hijacking. I think is was an isolated incident and the thieves were some jackasses that needed money and took the vehicle to San Luis to a chop shop and 4wd gets more money for parts. Remember that the ID was found thrown out on the highway. SAn Luis has always been a hot bed of chop shops. There is a market for passports and IDs. especially if you are moving people. The cartel guys don't need to call attention to themselves with this kind of activity and I bet they are not particularly happy about it. They routinely drop $30K for a new vehicle if they want one. They don't want to move stuff in a stolen vehicle which may be watched for and noticed on the road risking delivery. They don't want to cause a frenzy of enforcement activity along the border looking for hijacked vehicles that interferes with routine transport. They don't want to call attention to their movements. They prefer to move their goods across the border quietly, if caught they lose money in cost of goods and no profit. Most of the goods are transported on foot or up until recently in large trucks.

The Mexican military are now stopping and electronically examining virtually all of the large northbound trucks, causing huge delays in deliveries. Trucks are backed up 5 or 6 miles taking days to pass. This is Meridia money from the US. Produce and other goods are in short supply in Hermosillo as a result. There is more cartel interest in the Carribbean routes as a result.

None the less it's a horrible tragedy for the victims.

I agree completely Roberto... It would be foolish to say the least to try and smuggle drugs across the border in a jacked vehicle. Like you said, why would they when there are so many safer and more reliable options.

 

[Terry C]

Besides, I don't think they would want a murder victim or victims on a highway jacking on the way to the RP

 

[Roberto]

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60D4XS20100114

Here's an article that probably describes, fairly accurately, how the cartels work. The idea of random violence caused by the cartels is in error, I think. It makes for a sexier story for the US News maybe, but also causes some misapprehension. If you think of the events on the Sonoita highway as random violence by a couple of loose cannons, you might feel one way. If you think of those events as being the direct result of an ongoing program of a large group of highly organized, armed, well trained, vicious people that seem to operate unfettered outside the law, you might feel another way. Neither is good, but certainly your understanding and interpretation of the events will differ.


These events disrupt 'normal' business for the cartels. Think about it. If this kind of stupid, violent, disruptive activity was part of their business plan the entire border would be a war zone. No one and nothing would be safe and we all know it ain't that extreme. Although some might object, I still think of it as the normal background violence that exists across the US. No excuses, no apoligies intended, it's wrong and its unacceptable, but the activity level certainly falls within the statistically normal range. As always be careful, take precautions. The major violence is directed at competing families and infringing independents, but innocent folk can get caught in it.

My guess is, if identified, the bodies of the car jackers will turn up somewhere. Whadda ya think Audsley, would that make you happy?

Check out the sidebar story on the linked article. That's more like it. Moving the junk in private lear jets, not stolen 4x4s. The cartels are about where the Italian Family was in the late 60's and 70's, rapidly buying into legitimate businesses. They don't all keep their cash in the bedroom closet! They are the Rockefellers, the Kennedys, the Fords, the robber barons of Mexico and the society families of the next generations.