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Mexican police investigated for bribery
AP on Yahoo ^ | 1/26/07 | Ioan Grillo - ap

Posted on 01/26/2007 9:05:15 PM PST by NormsRevenge

MEXICO CITY - Six federal police officers involved in President Felipe Calderon's anti-drug operation were being investigated for extortion on Friday after they were videotaped taking money from a driver in the border city of Tijuana, officials said.

The men, part of a force of more than 3,300 police and soldiers sent to Tijuana to clamp down on drug gangs and corruption, will be punished if found guilty, the Public Safety Department said in a statement.

A videotape recorded by the Tijuana city police department shows the officers at a checkpoint stopping a motorist and searching his vehicle. After a discussion, the motorist was shown giving the police a handful of cash including at least one $100 bill.

The videotape, taken Jan. 17, was released to the media and posted on Mexican news Web sites on Friday.

Soldiers involved in the anti-drug offensive known as Operation Tijuana have been inspecting firearms belonging to Tijuana's 2,000 city police for three weeks, in response to allegations by federal investigators that a network of officers supports smugglers who traffic drugs into the United States.

The Tijuana police have held demonstrations, complaining they need their guns for their jobs and stand a higher risk of being shot dead without them.

More than 300 people were slain in Tijuana last year, including 13 police officers.

On Monday, the Tijuana police department announced it had issued some officers slingshots and ball bearings to defend themselves.

Calderon narrowly won the presidency last year on a law-and-order platform and has promised to dismantle drug gangs who killed more than 2,000 people across Mexico last year.

Since December, he has sent more than 20,000 police and soldiers to regions across Mexico that have been ravaged by drug-related violence, such as Tijuana and the Pacific resort of Acapulco. Last week, he also extradited four alleged drug kingpins to the United States.

Karen Tandy, chief of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, has described Calderon's battle against drug gangs as "an enormous leap forward."


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Foreign Affairs; Mexico; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: bribery; investigated; lamordida; mexican; police

1 posted on 01/26/2007 9:05:16 PM PST by NormsRevenge
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Yer kiddin'

The only think that would be news is if they could find a Mexican Policeman that hasn't taken bribes.

2 posted on 01/26/2007 9:10:41 PM PST by evad
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To: NormsRevenge
I think ALL of the Mex Police are corrupt. I believe the Federal-es took the weapons away from the local police. So the local police probably, with the cooperation of their drug buddies, set the deal up so it could be taped.... I don't think the Federal-es had an undercover police officer with his hand out who snitched to the local PD. JMO
3 posted on 01/26/2007 9:11:42 PM PST by Sam Ketcham (Amnesty means vote dilution, & increased taxes to bring us down to the world poverty level.)
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To: NormsRevenge
giving the police a handful of cash including at least one $100 bill.

Damn, some fool driving the cost of bribes up.

BTW, Cozumel was full of Federales last week walking around looking important.

4 posted on 01/26/2007 9:20:14 PM PST by razorback-bert (Posted by Time's Man of the Year)
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To: NormsRevenge
Mexican police investigated for bribery

Do bees buzz? Is the sky blue?

On Monday, the Tijuana police department announced it had issued some officers slingshots and ball bearings to defend themselves.

I wonder if there's a practice range where they can become proficient in slingshot.

5 posted on 01/27/2007 2:28:35 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

Slingshots?
That means even 10 year olds are better armed then the cops.


6 posted on 01/27/2007 3:36:55 AM PST by Joe Boucher (an enemy of islam)
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To: Joe Boucher

I know a little spot in TJ where the cops can get a good deal on switchblades and butterfly knives.


7 posted on 01/27/2007 7:31:03 AM PST by Enterprise (Drop pork bombs on the Islamofascist wankers. Praise the Lord and pass the hammunition.)
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To: NormsRevenge; Jedi Master Pikachu; 2dogjoe; radar101; RamingtonStall; engrpat; HamiltonFan; ...

Old Mexico Ping!

If you want on, or off this S. Texas/Mexico ping list, please FReepMail me.


8 posted on 01/27/2007 7:32:21 AM PST by SwinneySwitch (Terroristas - beyond your expectations!)
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To: NormsRevenge
La Mordida - literally, "the bite." Its as old as Mexican culture and very difficult to eradicate. Corruption is a necessary lubricant to an inefficient governmental system. It does not work as well without it and it makes crooks of even honest people because the reality in Mexico is, without payments under the table, nothing gets done.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

9 posted on 01/27/2007 7:35:37 AM PST by goldstategop (In Memory Of A Dearly Beloved Friend Who Lives In My Heart Forever)
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To: goldstategop

without payments under the table, nothing gets done"

Americans simply don't realize how engrained into the culture and business world the "mordita" is.

You can't get on the list to have a telephone installed or get it installed without the "little bite"

Civil servants--including cops--are so underpaid that they cannot live on their official salaries and so resort to the 'little bite'

In one way, you can call it a very efficient system of government based on the capitalist premise that those who use the services actually pay for them rather than spreading the costs over the population as a whole.


10 posted on 01/27/2007 7:44:12 AM PST by wildbill
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To: goldstategop
"It does not work as well without it and it makes crooks of even honest people because the reality in Mexico is, without payments under the table, nothing gets done."

Having lived in San Diego for 11 years and gone to TJ many, many times, I have lots of stories of friends getting shaken down (I was lucky). I heard too that the street cops had to pay their captains weekly amounts that exceeded the cops' salaries. Thus, the drunken tourists are picked up for alleged transgressions and shaken down. The more egregious instances are where they hold one tourist at jail while his buddy goes to the ATM stateside for the big bucks and returns with the cash. Holding many treasures, Mexico is filled with so much corrupt trash...

11 posted on 01/27/2007 7:48:27 AM PST by eureka! (May the voters see the light next time.....)
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