Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – In recent weeks, Puerto Vallarta’s business community has been shaken by a surge in extortion attempts, with between 12 and 16 cases reported in just the last two weeks alone. This concerning trend was highlighted by the newly appointed president of the Business Coordinating Council (CCE), Juan Pablo Martínez Torres, who himself fell victim to this criminal activity.
Martínez Torres revealed that numerous calls have flooded in from various sectors, including restaurants, hotels, and condominium administrators, all reporting pressures to extort them in various forms. “In recent weeks we have had many calls from businessmen, from different sectors, from restaurants, hotels, to condominium administrators, pressured to extort them in one way or another. Yes, we have seen this important increase,” stated Martínez Torres.
Emphasizing the need for vigilance and swift action, the business leader stressed the importance of promptly reporting such incidents to enable training initiatives among council members. “It is important that our members have enough tools and elements to be able to react in a certain way, in the face of these types of situations,” Martínez Torres asserted, underscoring the council’s commitment to ongoing training in response to this emerging threat.
Thankfully, despite the uptick in reported cases, Martínez Torres noted that none of the affected businessmen had succumbed to extortion demands thus far. However, he cautioned that the frequency of calls related to this criminal phenomenon remains worryingly high.
Against the backdrop of these extortion attempts, it is pertinent to note Puerto Vallarta’s recent decline in the perception of security, as indicated by the latest results of the National Survey on Urban Public Safety conducted by Inegi. Falling from second to seventh place in terms of perceived insecurity, this downward trend underscores the urgency of addressing and combating criminal activities such as extortion within the community.
As Puerto Vallarta’s business sector grapples with this concerning escalation in extortion attempts, stakeholders are urged to remain vigilant, report any suspicious activities promptly, and actively engage in measures aimed at bolstering resilience against such threats.
