Kidnapping fears prompt warning to tourists using dating apps in Mexico
On Tuesday (3 June), the US Consulate General Guadalajara issued a security alert to 'use caution when using dating apps'.
It warned: 'U.S. Consulate General Guadalajara has confirmed several reports of U.S. citizens being kidnapped by individuals the victims met on dating apps in recent months in the Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Nayarit areas.
'Victims and their family members in the United States have at times been extorted for large sums of money to secure their release. Please be aware that this type of violence is not limited to one geographic area.'
The security alert identified Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco and Nuevo Nayarit as potentially dangerous areas to use dating apps in Mexico.
Under the State Department's travel advisory for Mexico, Jalisco is classified as 'Level 3: Reconsider Travel' due to crime and kidnapping, with Nayarit a 'Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution' due to crime.
The US consulate advised travellers to only meet strangers in public places and to avoid isolation locations, including hotel rooms where 'crimes are most likely to occur'.
It added that tourists should make friends and family aware of their plans and the platform they are using before meeting someone from a dating app.
'Trust your instincts. If something does not feel right, do not hesitate to remove yourself from a situation,' said the alert.
In February, tourists were warned not to travel to several Mexican cities due to 'increasingly frequent gun battles' and criminally manufactured IEDs in one region.
The US travel advisory for the Tamaulipas region, bordering Texas and the Gulf of Mexico, has a level 4, 'do not travel' warning due to violent crime and kidnapping.
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