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4 US
Passports Stolen Every Day
The United States Embassy in San
José is warning tourists to keep
an close eye on their passports
and other documents, saying that
four U.S. passports are stolen
every day.
The embassy released figures
saying that they have received
516 reports of stolen passports
from January 1 to May 3, this
year. During 2005, the number of
reported stolen passports was
1.146.
Elaine Samson of the U.S.
embassy told the Spanish
language daily newspaper Al Día
that "we don't believe that
there exists an organized
network for stealing passports,
however, we cannot deny that
there are groups who buy the the
documents".
Samson said that the thefts
occur in all areas of the
country. The Pacific north (Guanacaste)
to Quepos/Manuel Antonio, Jacó,
La Fortuna de San Carlos and San
José are the most common areas
for the thefts.
Johnny Marín, director of
Migración, added that they are
following strong leads into
groups who dedicated themselves
to stealing and selling
passports, both foreign as well
as Costa Rican. "This past week
we detected a Colombian national
with a Costa Rican passport,
headed for Mexico", said Marín,
who added that the document was
perfect, including the man's
photo.
A Costa Rican passport can go
for as much as us$100, but an
American passport can bring in
thousands of dollars.
The U.S. Embassy recommends that
you don't travel around the
country with your passpory, but,
rather carry a photocopy of the
passport which is valid
identification in the face of
the growing number of thefts.
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