Reporter's notebook: Why Mexico City airport shooting is so troubling
(Read article summary)The shootout at Mexico City's international airport might be a rare event, but it's also a measure of how – and why – the perception of security in Mexico continues to plummet.
Mexico City
The shootout in the food court, just after 9 a.m., in Mexico City's international airport Monday might be a rare event. But it's also a measure of how – and why – the perception of security in this country continues to plummet.
Visiting Mexico City is an intimidating prospect. So I almost always meet visitors at the airport, a friendly face who knows her way around, trying to prove that this big bad metropolis is misunderstood.
The few times I haven't been able to make it, I have never worried for my visitors' safety. I simply give them the one piece of advice they must always – always – follow: do not take a taxi from the street. Almost all express kidnappings (where victims are often picked up, taken to an ATM and forced to withdraw all of their money) happen in unauthorized cabs, and no targets are better than disoriented tourists. “Buy a ticket at the counter and walk directly to the taxi line,” I always implore.
That worked well enough for a while. But in 2009 something tragic happened. A French researcher arrived in Mexico City and changed over 4,000 euros at a cash exchange booth. Someone had been watching. And when the man drove away with a driver, he was followed. At a side street he was shot in the head, his backpack full of cash taken.
