Costa Rica: Passport Thefts

By Larry Habegger | Permalink | No Comments | July 20th, 2005 | Trackback

Despite its allure as a peaceful, tropical escape with numerous national parks and adventure tourism programs, Costa Rica has a high petty crime rate, with foreign passports being a prime target. Police recently arrested seven Costa Ricans and two Colombians who had a business of buying and selling stolen U.S. passports. The U.S. Embassy reported 1299 U.S. passports stolen in Costa Rica last year and already 1274 stolen this year. Western European embassies report a similar rate of passport theft. Most crime here is non-violent, but criminals are increasingly carrying knives and guns, and should be assumed to be armed.

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