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Robbed in Cali Colombia
#51

Robbed in Cali Colombia

^^^^

Brazil is really worse than Colombia? Is that still the case even if you try to stay out of the favelas?

Are taxi drivers in Brazil really more shady than in Colombia?
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#52

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Hey bootyhuntah - thanks for your story I'll definitely be sure to keep all this in mind.

This particular part:

Quote: (09-21-2015 09:37 AM)bootyhuntah Wrote:  

Red flag #3 - about 2-3 minutes after leaving the terminal, the taxista pulled into a natural gas refueling station to fill up the tank. We were instructed to get out of the car while it was being refueled for our own safety. The taxista then disappeared for a few minutes and returned once the refueling was complete, probably 4-5 minutes later.

This is where I think you had made the mistake. There should be ZERO circumstances to leave the Taxi while refueling. But it is easy to point out stuff in hindsight, but thankfully this bad experience didn't result in something worse. I'm glad you're both safe.
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#53

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 02:41 PM)Cheetah Wrote:  

^^^^

Brazil is really worse than Colombia? Is that still the case even if you try to stay out of the favelas?

Are taxi drivers in Brazil really more shady than in Colombia?

Here are two comparable cities in terms of population -- 6.3 & 6.7 million

[Image: attachment.jpg28205]   
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#54

Robbed in Cali Colombia

^
Linux which website did you get those stats from?
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#55

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 02:41 PM)CH-Toronto Wrote:  

Hey bootyhuntah - thanks for your story I'll definitely be sure to keep all this in mind.

This particular part:

Quote: (09-21-2015 09:37 AM)bootyhuntah Wrote:  

Red flag #3 - about 2-3 minutes after leaving the terminal, the taxista pulled into a natural gas refueling station to fill up the tank. We were instructed to get out of the car while it was being refueled for our own safety. The taxista then disappeared for a few minutes and returned once the refueling was complete, probably 4-5 minutes later.

This is where I think you had made the mistake. There should be ZERO circumstances to leave the Taxi while refueling. But it is easy to point out stuff in hindsight, but thankfully this bad experience didn't result in something worse. I'm glad you're both safe.

Hmmmm... Taxi drivers actually do take a leak sometimes, so it doesn't necessarily need to be bad.

How far was it between the bus station and the hotel/hostel? If it was a short distance, the driver would probably have been able to wait with the pit stop.

I've had a taxi driver to stop for refuelling as the destination wasn't local, yet I didn't like that inconvenience (this was in a 'safe' country).
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#56

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 02:48 PM)LINUX Wrote:  

Quote: (09-21-2015 02:41 PM)Cheetah Wrote:  

^^^^

Brazil is really worse than Colombia? Is that still the case even if you try to stay out of the favelas?

Are taxi drivers in Brazil really more shady than in Colombia?

Here are two comparable cities in terms of population -- 6.3 & 6.7 million

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_...icide_rate

That link says that the intentional homicide rate, as an average, is worse in Colombia compared to Brazil.
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#57

Robbed in Cali Colombia

To clarify a few things here, the taxi stopped like 3-4 buildings, not 3-4 blocks away from my hotel. We're talking like 50-60 ft.

I had never refueled at a natural gas station before. Maybe someone here who is more experience can chime in. I had assumed due to the explosive nature of the fuel, and that chance of ignition during refueling is likely a high-risk period of time, that this was standard operating procedure. But will have to look it up for sure.

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#58

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Glad you are ok.

I posted on here what a dump I thought Cali was compared
to Medellin.....no one listened.

The Oil and Gas slide is going to hit Colombia hard. Violence
is going to increase. IMO.









Quote: (09-21-2015 09:37 AM)bootyhuntah Wrote:  

So I wanted to share this after I've had a few days to reflect on my experience. Not doing this to scare anyone, but I do want to make sure that people are mentally prepared and aware of this type of situation because it is certainly not unheard of in Colombia. Most importantly, I believe there are precautions you can take to prevent yourself from being a victim of crime, but this doesn't reduce your chances to zero, obviously. And lastly, even though bad shit does happen in Colombia, chances are that you fill be fine if you are aware and take standard precautions like you would in any country.

Backstory: I have been traveling Latin American for a continuous 8.5 months now with no problems. I had already spent nearly 88 days in Colombia with zero violent incidents. The previous 13 days or so, I had passed in the south of Cali in an highly secure apartment in Ciudad Jardin. Cali was to be my last port of call in the country with 90 days in total before heading south into Ecuador over land. I was having a tough time in Cali up to this point, only doing day-game approaches with essentially zero lays (after several dates with some very sexy but flaky women). Spent almost 2 weeks in the south of the city doing strictly day game around the University del Valle area and Unicentro and some parts of the north around Centenario Mall, with only a sloppy BJ to show for it all...which admittedly is still better than nothing.

That being said, I decided to ship in a young sexy 21 y/o Colombiana from Manizales (I had met about 5 weeks prior) for my last weekend in Colombia. I had a few lukewarm prospects for the weekend but decided on the sure things instead. She had been hitting me up lately with, "quiero verte antes de irte." So I decided to go for the guaranteed lovin and bought her a bus ticket to Cali.

I met her at the Terminal de Transportes around 10PM on a Friday night as her bus was actually on time. From here we grabbed a quick snack before making our way over to the taxi line. Take note this is the official taxi line - we did not hail a cab from the street which is generally not advisable in Colombia, even though I've done it several times without incident. There was a single dark-skinned Colombian guy (looked black) in front of us in the line with several other middle-class people with luggage behind us. Red flag #1, when it was time for the black guy to get a taxi, I noticed that the next available taxi actually waved off this black guy and pointed to us to come get in instead. The thought that crossed my mind was about a Chris Rock standup routine complaining how hard it is for a black person to get a taxi in NYC, but otherwise didn't think anything of it.

Red flag #2 - I was instructed to put my girls luggage in the front passenger seat. When I closed the door (a bit too firmly, apparently), the taxista started angrily complaining that I slammed it way too hard. He clearly seemed to be agitated for some reason. I apolgized and was like, "tranquilo, tranquilo." Anyway, I gave him the address to my hotel and didn't think anything more of the situation.

Red flag #3 - about 2-3 minutes after leaving the terminal, the taxista pulled into a natural gas refueling station to fill up the tank. We were instructed to get out of the car while it was being refueled for our own safety. The taxista then disappeared for a few minutes and returned once the refueling was complete, probably 4-5 minutes later.

Ref flag #4 - we get back in the car and the guy is complaining about how expensive it cost to have to refuel his car (50,000 COP) and about how he has already been working 20 hours straight today. I was starting to now get uncomfortable at this guy's negativity but me and my girl just kinda brushed him off and thought it better to ignore him.

We slowly approach my hostel now and it is probably 10:45 PM. My hostel is located on Calle 5 across from the Library. It is quite dark, there isn't much traffic, but I didn't think anything further. The taxista approached my hostel very slowly as he appeared to be looking at the numbers to see where the hotel was. Eventually, I just said, "this is close enough, we will walk 3-4 buildings...gracias." We get out of the taxi, my girl gets our on the opposite side toward the driver's side/street and I get out on the opposite side on the sidewalk/passenger side. Pay the man 20k and get about 9k change. I have the change now in my left hand and my girl's wheeled suitcase in my right hand. Close the door gently, and the guy pulls away about 20 ft and stops.

As I turn to my right I see a guy on a motorcycle (engine quietly running) wearing all black clothing and immediately notice a semi-automatic pistol in his lap, full face helmet on his head. Immediately I knew we were fucked. Next thing I know I feel a cold hard metal object being repeatedly rammed into my right shoulder blade. I knew it was a gun (#2). I dropped the taxi fare change to the ground, and we both simultaneously put our hands up. Then, I slowly went for my iphone 4 in my left pocket and just held it up. It was snatched up immediately. I look out of the corner of my eye and I see my girl in a hysterical panic. The girl was now being approached by guy on motorbike #1, gun shoved in her face. The guy takes her huge purse and her wheeled suitcase, when a third guy on motorbike pulls up now and scoops up her suitcase. The guy then starts patting her down with one hand while holding her at gunpoint with the other. From here, I still have a gun in my back, and my guy tells me "Cartera, Cartera." I reach into my right pocket and give him my moneyclip. From here, the guys slowly walk towards their waiting motorbikes while looking back over their shoulders at us.

Then, they just drive off, while occasionally looking back at us. I grab my girl and we immediately run into the front entrance of my hostel. The robbery is over, although she is absolutely hysterical and can barely breathe...

Overall damage: she lost what amounted to easily over $1200 USD in merchandise. For her, this is about a 3 month salary. Two smartphones, lots of nice clothing, her wallet, bank card, 30,000 pesos in cash, makeup, purse, etc. I lost about 150,000 pesos in cash, my travel bank card, my ID, and a beat-up iphone 4.

Lessons learned/advice from this experience:

(1) Whenever possible, always use easytaxi, uber, or a similar app when calling taxis in Colombia. This will ensure that you have the driver's information in the event shit hits the fan. I personally prefer using public transport when possible, but in a city like Cali this isn't really possible.

(2) Under no circumstances should your taxi driver stop en route to your destination. Taxi drivers are specifically prohibited from doing this during a taxi fare - didn't know this at the time.

(3) Under no circumstances should your taxi driver be on his phone. People in Colombia are generally very wary/paranoid of a taxi driver on their phone because it is easy for them to tip off some waiting robbers.

(4) If your taxi driver seems agitated or in a negative mood at all whatsoever, get the fuck out of the cab and get a new one. There is no reason you should be dealing with a taxi driver with a bad attitude or bad mood.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It turns out we firmly believe that we were set up - the whole thing was planned. When we stopped to fill up the tank, we believe that the taxi driver called in the muscle during the time that he disappeared to use the bathroom. Next day, we filed a police report at the police station in the centro of Cali, then I went to the bus station and we watched the video of the registered taxi line. While at the police station telling our story, one of the clerks just shakes her head, let's out a sigh, and says, "Cali es Cali" (Cali is Cali)...she seemed disappointed but completely unsurprised. Luckily, our taxi driver's vehicle was on video and we were able to get his plate number. That being said, it is highly unlikely that there will be any sort of justice done on our case. After talking with the police detective, we realized how swamped and understaffed their office seemed to be. We realize and understand that there will probably be no justice in this case, given how inefficient the justice system seems to be in this country. Lesson learned, and I hope at least one person can learn from this too.
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#59

Robbed in Cali Colombia

^ Spot on.

Colombia became much more cheaper for us, but also same time it became more dangerous because of the slide in the oil prices.....
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#60

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote:dalbroker Wrote:

Glad you are ok.

I posted on here what a dump I thought Cali was compared
to Medellin.....no one listened.

The Oil and Gas slide is going to hit Colombia hard. Violence
is going to increase. IMO.

I don't think Cali is a dump at all. It's my favorite city. I thought Barranquilla and Santa Marta were dumps.
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#61

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 03:02 PM)bootyhuntah Wrote:  

To clarify a few things here, the taxi stopped like 3-4 buildings, not 3-4 blocks away from my hotel. We're talking like 50-60 ft.

I had never refueled at a natural gas station before. Maybe someone here who is more experience can chime in. I had assumed due to the explosive nature of the fuel, and that chance of ignition during refueling is likely a high-risk period of time, that this was standard operating procedure. But will have to look it up for sure.

I wouldn't want to sit in the car while refuelling, even if the weather was horrible.

Those types of gas stations take ages to refuel so as I mentioned taking a leak while waiting anyway is kinda natural.

And if it is natural or other type of gas the endurance is often shorter so you need to fill up more often.

I'm not totally convinced that the taxi driver was a part of it, but of course he could have been. Arrivals outside a hotel/hostel could be targets that robbers generally prey on.
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#62

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 03:15 PM)LINUX Wrote:  

Quote:dalbroker Wrote:

Glad you are ok.

I posted on here what a dump I thought Cali was compared
to Medellin.....no one listened.

The Oil and Gas slide is going to hit Colombia hard. Violence
is going to increase. IMO.

I don't think Cali is a dump at all. It's my favorite city. I thought Barranquilla and Santa Marta were dumps.
It would be my favorite too brother, if calenas were just coming over, and I was just banging them..without having to put up with all the hassle and their annoying personalities.
In Spanish and with non-gringos, they are a whole different story. Though in terms of looks, they are the real deal.
Overall, this story only confirms my overall assessment of Cali. Not that Barranquilla or Medellin are so much better, but Cali at this point in time, for most of us, is not one of the better options in Colombia.
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#63

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Taxi drivers that are in the front of the line could have waited for quite a long time, so they don't want a bad (short) ride. He might have thought/knew that the black man would bring in less money than he thought that you would. Maybe the better areas where someone looking like you tend to live is further away. Maybe he thought that the chances that you giving a big tip when he complained about fuel costs, was higher than with the black man?

All the red flags could have a natural explanation.
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#64

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 02:41 PM)CH-Toronto Wrote:  

Hey bootyhuntah - thanks for your story I'll definitely be sure to keep all this in mind.

This particular part:

Quote: (09-21-2015 09:37 AM)bootyhuntah Wrote:  

Red flag #3 - about 2-3 minutes after leaving the terminal, the taxista pulled into a natural gas refueling station to fill up the tank. We were instructed to get out of the car while it was being refueled for our own safety. The taxista then disappeared for a few minutes and returned once the refueling was complete, probably 4-5 minutes later.

This is where I think you had made the mistake. There should be ZERO circumstances to leave the Taxi while refueling. But it is easy to point out stuff in hindsight, but thankfully this bad experience didn't result in something worse. I'm glad you're both safe.

It has happened to me once and yes I did have to get out of the taxi. I think it depends on the situation; in my case he realized he was out of gas and had to stop to fill up. I didn't feel any danger, but he explained everything to me beforehand and we continued on our way without issue.
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#65

Robbed in Cali Colombia

What did the police think? Did they say if they thought that the driver was a part of it?
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#66

Robbed in Cali Colombia

I`ve read a couple of the posts you guys have made in this thread, and even though you have some good points, i want to clear some things out.

First of all, Cali is as safe as any other city in Colombia. What you got was just a combination of bad luck, coincidence and foreign look. The place you were staying in (based by my general knowledge of the city) is pretty sketchy. next to the public library, there are a couple of pretty bad neighborhoods. If you follow this forum and/or have lived around latin america fr the past 8 months you should really have clear the idea of being careful and taking care of yourself i a place were you stand out and that you don`t know.

In regards with the cab robery, i am really sorry. That was just a really shitty situation, that could really happen to anyone. Im glad you werent hurt.

Cali is a beautiful place, that has great game and great women.

Next time in cali, try keeping it close to either ciudad jardin or the west (granada, centenario, normandia, el peñon)

hope you guys dont back down this awesome place. i live here and ive only been robbed once (i was walking down a sketchy place)
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#67

Robbed in Cali Colombia

You had a bad taxi experience and asked to be dropped off before you arrived at your destination.

If you wouldn't have had a bad taxi experience you would probably have waited to hop off until the car reached its destination.

So in a way your bad taxi experience contributed to you and the girl getting robbed, but not necessarily because the driver was a part of the robbery.
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#68

Robbed in Cali Colombia

And why complain about long shifts and expensive fuel if it wasn't because he wanted a big tip from you, maybe so you could show off to the girl how generous you are?

The driver probably wouldn't have cared much about any tip from you if he knew that he would get a kickback from any robbers.
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#69

Robbed in Cali Colombia

And lastly, is it really likely that an unlicensed taxi would stand in the line where only licensed taxis are allowed? The legit taxis would probably chase off the unlicensed I guess provided that there are several cars in line so at least a few of them are legit.
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#70

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote:Quote:

hope you guys dont back down this awesome place. i live here and ive only been robbed once (i was walking down a sketchy place)

'Only once'..... But for how long time have you lived there?
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#71

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 02:54 PM)Turkish Republican Wrote:  

^
Linux which website did you get those stats from?

Most likely numbeo.com
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#72

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 03:49 PM)Cheetah Wrote:  

You had a bad taxi experience and asked to be dropped off before you arrived at your destination.

If you wouldn't have had a bad taxi experience you would probably have waited to hop off until the car reached its destination.

So in a way your bad taxi experience contributed to you and the girl getting robbed, but not necessarily because the driver was a part of the robbery.

If you read the story, he said the taxi drove 20ft and stopped after they let him out.

I am sure the taxi driver knew where the hostel was and pretended to slow down to look for the building numbers. It seemed a bit too convenient as soon as the OP got out of the taxi, these thieves were waiting.

I wouldn't expect much from the police.

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#73

Robbed in Cali Colombia

+1 --glad you were not harmed - extra points and respect for getting the bang later
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#74

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Quote: (09-21-2015 03:44 PM)joecolombia Wrote:  

First of all, Cali is as safe as any other city in Colombia.

This is an opinion.

OP, glad to hear you and your girl were unharmed.
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#75

Robbed in Cali Colombia

Doesn't Cali have Uber or other app-based taxis? I don't even know why people bother with regular taxis anymore, especially at night.

At least you got the bang though [Image: wink.gif]
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