Con artists prey on foreign backpackers

In just two weeks, there have been three separate incidents reported of backpackers from abroad being befriended, drugged and later on robbed by a well-organized group of men and women posing as a friendly family to unsuspecting victims. All three foreigners are members of a social networking site called Couchsurfing which has a membership of over one million around the world. If three incidents within the small subpopulation of Couchsurfers have been reckoned, one can only imagine the scale of the problem and just how many other foreigners and locals have been duped into the sinister scams.

Thanks to the coordination among the victims, police and embassy officials, two of the people said to be responsible for the robberies have been arrested after an entrapment operation. With the information provided by the victims and the strategic planning done by the police,they have been apprehended and are now awaiting filing of charges.

The modus operandi

According to Chloe (*not her real name) from Singapore, she was watching a couple get married at the historic Malate church when she was approached and engaged in a conversation by a friendly woman in her 40s. A seasoned traveler, Chloe would typically have her guard up when approached by strangers in parts known to be the hang out of syndicates that prey on backpackers and travelers, but for one reason or another, she found herself warming up to the lady.

Later on, Chloe would be offered to be taken to the lady’s house where she would be introduced to her whole “family," actually other members of the gang, who would further disarm the unsuspecting foreigner with their welcome. Meanwhile, Chloe was thinking she was getting a warm dose of of the famous Filipino hospitality; little did she know that something sinister was about to follow.

The family would eventually tell her she was just in time for a family outing to the cool and breezy city of Tagaytay along the ridge of the Taal Lake. Seeing the opportunity to travel and interact further with the nice “family,” Chloe agreed to go with them, ignoring her better instincts. When Chloe recalled how she made that decision, she was hard pressed to explain how she could have been deceived .

From what was initially a day trip to Tagaytay, the family decided to stay the night at a guest house. This was where they offered Chloe a spiked drink that made her very groggy and vulnerable.

The next thing she knew, she was all alone in the guest house the next day with a very vague recollection of what happened the night before. All her belongings were still with her, making it hard for her to even suspect that something was amiss. With an incomplete memory of what transpired, Chloe went back to Manila, not knowing that the crooks had successfully taken about 3000 USD from her ATM account! Since the card was never missing to begin with, it was hard for Chloe to even imagine that something terrible was going on.

Chloe recounts that the culprits were still in contact with her by mobile phone after the robbery, acting as if nothing untoward happened.

It is not clear how Chloe’s PIN code was broken by the “family” since an ATM machine would usually lock the account after three failed attempts in correctly entering the code. Chloe surmises she could have somehow given them the numbers during her drunken stupor.

Finally, after realizing she had been victimized by con operators, Chloe got in touch with the Couchsurfing network who assisted her in making sure she took necessary steps to report and press charges against the criminals.

Fortunately, this harrowing experience did not stop Chloe from enjoying the rest of her days in the country. She would still travel across the islands, following her tight itinerary before heading back to Manila.

Alarming frequency

This type of conning seems to be on the rise. Back in September 2009, another female traveler fell victim to this scam. A blog entry on Facebook recounts the equally disturbing experience that this American tourist underwent in the hands of the very same “family” that victimized Chloe. Fortunately, she was able to take photos of her “captors” and was able to post their images online. Their photos are visible for viewing in the linked Facebook entry.

In January 2009, the Philippine Daily Inquirer ran a story on how a South Korean national was robbed of over 300 000 Php when he met a person claiming to be a Thai tourist as he was exploring the narrow streets of Binondo, Manila.

Other reports indicate some victims were also raped and molested.

The brother of popular movie star Robin Padilla fell prey to the same gang and had to go to the hospital afterwards to receive treatment.

Danger

While it may be true that the safety of a person largely depends on his or her demeanor and ability to spot risks and dangers along the way, there are some things hard to control, like the proliferation of bad elements in an area. No matter how we wish to tout Manila as being as safe as any other city in the world, there are just some areas in the Metro that are simply more dangerous than the rest. Malate and Ermita are two of these. For Him Magazine (FHM) has confirmed this report in an interview with local police on crime rates in these places.

The use of the drug “Ativan” has been associated with the modus operandi of the Ativan Gang. Ativan is a brand name of the commonly used sedative drug lorazepam. This narcotic drug is supposed to be hard to obtain,requiring a special prescription that not all doctors can give out. Another drug of choice is Rohypnol – the so-called "date-rape drug" that has the generic name flunitrazepam.

Be alert

At the end of the day, the only way to avoid being victimized by con operators is to always be aware of the risks and dangers. A tourist in a strange country easily stands out in a crowd so he or she must be aware of the increased risk when venturing to the "touristy" side of town where bad elements tend to prowl.

While being paranoid might be unnecessary and spoil the enjoyment of traveling, being on one’s toes would certainly go a long way in insuring a hassle-free holiday.

The things to do should be fairly obvious:

1. Be wary of strangers behaving in a too friendly manner.

2. Do not agree to be taken to a strange place.

3. Never reveal way too many details about yourself to anyone you are not familiar with.

4. Do not accept an invitation to an impromptu tour with strangers.

5. Do not drink or eat anything offered to you by strangers especially if you are not sure what it is or how it was prepared. This could have easily been spiked by a dangerous substance that would render you powerless to defend yourself.

6. Be on your toes and have presence of mind to detect suspicious behavior.

7. Should anything wrong happen, have a back-up plan. Be sure you have within easy reach the numbers you need to report missing credit cards and other important documents. Get in touch with your embassy and your local friends for help.

8. Inform the police and file a report. Most travellers don’t bother with this, opting to leave the unpleasant place immediately. Reporting your experience to the police and the media would certainly make the apprehension of the criminals more likely. Perhaps, more importantly, you would be doing the next potential victims of the syndicate a huge favor.

Photo: “backpackers in vientane” by , c/o Flickr. Some Rights Reserved

Photo: “Malate Church” by Solo Galura, c/o Flickr. Some Rights Reserved

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