Los Mexican drug cartels they are out of control and students shouldn’t travel to the country on spring break, warns a former New York police officer. At a time when thousands of American college students, the so-called spring breakers travel to Mexico, mainly to the beaches, Michael Alcazar a former New York Police Department detective, warned, in statements to The New York Post, that “right now, it seems like the most dangerous time [de la historia] to travel to Mexico.
“The Mexican government has no control over what is happening with the cartels. The cartels seem to be running wild,” he added. The statements come after the kidnapping of four Americans in Matamoroso, Tamaulipas, two of whom were murdered at the hands of the Gulf cartel . Another American was reported missing in Colima.
Alcazar, who worked for the New York police for more than three decades, said: “It’s not worth getting hurt, or killed, or kidnapped by a couple of [de] vacation weeks at the university.
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His warning is added to the one made in recent days by Texas authorities to the spring breakers to avoid traveling to Mexico. Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw said drug cartel violence “represents a significant security threat” to anyone entering Mexico.
Although President Andrés Manuel López Obrador affirms that Mexico is “more secure” than the United States, Alcázar affirmed that “of course, Obrador is going to say that Mexico is safe. He does not want to discourage travel. He also doesn’t want it to look like he has lost control of his country.” However, he warned that the reality is different and the cartels are “out of control”.
Also read: “I would not let my son go to Mexico for spring break,” says Senator Bob Menéndez
He considered that cartel members want innocent Americans to fear the organizations. “The cartels are very violent and more open. They are very violent and they want their violence to be feared.”
For those Americans who have already booked trips to Mexico, Alcázar asked them to reconsider and find a way to get a refund. If that’s not possible, he gave some advice to Americans in Mexico to stay safe. “ They must be very careful. They should travel in a group, either with family or friends.”
Another recommendation is that they do not show the cash they carry when leaving their hotels. “The cartels look for people who have money. They are hunting, that is what they do, ”he explained. “Americans are a commodity for the cartels to make money.”
The US State Department has six states on its list of places Americans should not travel to because of the risk of crime and kidnapping: Colima, Guerrero, Michoacán, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas and Zacatecas. But according to Alcázar, the travel warnings have come late. “It definitely looks like [las advertencias] They were more reactive than proactive.” * With information from GDA
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