Expat Community > Ecuador

SteveM
Joined 2009
Posts: 26

Pro-active crime prevention?

12 years ago

Does this make sense? I live in a middle class barrio in Quito backing on to the largest urban park south of the Mexican border. There has been some crime in the area; hold ups for a cell phone or wallet, no violent hold ups as far as I know.
So I´m walking the dog and a cop on a motor bike pulls up and asks if I live in the street. He says there are suspicious people around. Comforting that he and his buddies are on dirt bikes looking for them.
Then he offers a free service. Fill out a form with my address and cellphone number. He will then offered to adjust my cell phone so that if I pushed 2 buttons ´5´and the ´call´button that would act as a panic alarm and they would be around at my address in an instant.
I declined for various reasons. One is a spiritual perspective. Another is that I already pay $40/month to Juan Carlos our local guard for 24/7 vigilence. But perhaps more importantly, I just don't trust some of the police. Once they have my phone number I suspect they may be able to track it and determine whather I am out of town or not.
What made it more suspicious was thet he said this service was only available for 5 people in my barrio (what vagaries determine who gets to be one of the 5 people? .. being a gringo walking the dog?) and as I am a foreigner it might be of more use for me as I may be more of a target.
By the way, there was no doubt he was a bonafide police office; official bike, uniform, radio chat in my presence, flashing blue lights etc. Doesn't necesarily make him an honest cop though. Has anyone else heard of this? It seems open to abuse to me.

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Expat Community > Ecuador

Pro-active crime prevention?

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