Couple found murdered

[Captleemo]

https://www.foxnews.com/us/texas-dep...ered-rv-stolen
I just saw this on the news and thought I'd pass it on. Any info on RVers being preyed upon as they travel the country? This story was pretty horrific.

[floyd]

Such a serious subject merits spell check in the heading!

[steve dunham]

Spelling aside , several of our acquaintances/ friends used to winter in the South Padre Islands and the Corpus Christie area . After being accosted by armed intruders while camping on the beach, they decided that the smartest / safest thing to do is vacation elsewhere . Both now winter over in Arizona
These event are sad but all too frequent !!

[ZachO]

That is terrible. My computer won't let me open the site in the link for some reason.

I have to ask, are these events frequent? I don't ever hear about this. What I see is thousands and thousands of people who this never happens to. And a very occasional person it does happen to.

[DuaneQ]

Originally Posted by Captleemo

https://www.foxnews.com/us/texas-dep...ered-rv-stolen
I just saw this on the news and thought I'd pass it on. Any info on RVers being preyed upon as they travel the country? This story was pretty horrific.

About 3 years ago I was in a RV park in AZ and asked the lady at the front desk if I could move to the spot next to me since it was empty, larger and more secluded. She said no a couple is coming from the east coast has it rented. About a month later I asked again and was told the couple was robbed at gun point of all their valuables on their trip and then went back home.

[steve dunham]

I guess it is all too frequent if it happens to you otherwise it’s just another meaningless statistic . In our travels we have visited many places / states that just didn’t feel right to us and made us uneasy .
Climate is only one factor in our choice of where we spend our travel dollars

[Captleemo]

Sorry about the spelling. My Mr., Magoo vision strikes again.

[Raspy]

This is a huge subject, with lots of facets, that most likely extends way beyond the bounds of acceptable topics here on this site.

It does seem that just being a traveller, puts us in possible situations that could be dangerous, or that at least make us more vulnerable. There are also a lot of fears associated with various parts of the Country, or Mexico, that tend to make people stay away from those areas. Then there is the issue of being armed and the politics of that situation in various States, or Mexico and Canada.

Overall though, I wonder if RVers are more likely to be assaulted than the avarage citizen across the country? Certainly, getting hit in some areas is much more likely than in others, but overall, are we at a statistically higher risk than the average person?

[minke]

Originally Posted by Raspy

...

Overall though, I wonder if RVers are more likely to be assaulted than the avarage citizen across the country? Certainly, getting hit in some areas is much more likely than in others, but overall, are we at a statistically higher risk than the average person?

I wonder how being older than average (I presume that is true) affects risk.

[Glenn Baglo]

From 2005-2014, there were an average of 3,536 fatal unintentional drownings (non-boating related) annually in the United States — about ten deaths per day. An additional 332 people died each year from drowning in boating-related incidents. About one in five people who die from drowning are children 14 and younger.

[Raspy]

Glenn,

There are a lot of ugly statistics, but that doesn't change the concern about one specific situation. If you want to use big numbers for comparison, look at auto accidents. Look at cancer deaths. I was just wondering if we are more or less likely to get mugged than the average person.

[ZachO]

My initial point is that if you pay too much attention to sensationalized news, you'll think the second you step out your front door, someone is going to kill you. The western world is, for the most part, ridiculously safe.

Compare the statistics of driving deaths to RV-ers who get murdered or assaulted. How afraid are you to drive? I'm sure we all take precautions, but almost by definition the fact that we're on this forum means we do quite a bit of driving without much worry.


Travelers will always be targets.

First off I'm really lucky to live in a really safe place. I worry more about animals. But with my lifestyle of living out of my camper during the summer, I walk a line between not looking like a homeless person and not looking like a target - someone with a bunch of gear and money. So my camper, truck and camp are clean and tidy, but I'm not outfitted with rocket boxes, bike racks, or general "bling" that people love to mount to their trucks.

Campgrounds are interesting. It throws a whole bunch of people together as very very close neighbors, with really no time to develop any kind of relationship like you might in a neighborhood. And because often no one there is long term, you don't have the neighborhood watch aspect of a real neighborhood. It also takes a while to learn how safe a neighborhood is. Some places are almost 100% safe during the day, but dangerous at night, or there's a certain street you don't walk down etc. You don't know those things when you pull into an area with your RV.

I worry about that camping sometimes. I don't know this area. Is my camp a regular party spot for teenagers in the nearest town? Is it a place where people come to do drugs? This is something I tend to know in places I live, but things I don't know about places I'm traveling. That makes it more dangerous. You can sometimes tell by the amount of broken glass or other paraphernalia, but it's getting tougher as all camp sites on public land start getting more trashed...

[Daniel A.]

Guess the only thing that surprises me is how risky it is for someone to do this considering the number of people in the USA packing guns for defence.

[Cathy P.]

Not being smart and doing one's research will increase one's chances of running into serious trouble. Lots of information at one's finger tips these days. I believe the couple being discussed were in the 40's, so I don't see that as being vulnerable because of age. We have no idea what this couple was like as far as what they may have been doing there, etc. Lots of "stuff" goes on near the border. I get tired of seeing people saying that the RVing community is safe, don't have to worry about thieves, etc. All kinds of people RV, and mindset can certainly contribute to whether someone is safer or not.

A quick "google" tells me that San Padre Island is the 2nd most violent/dangerous city in TX (and TX has some stiff competition), and that it was a major drug traffic route coming out of Mexico. With that knowledge, I just wouldn't take the chance, far too many other places to visit.

There is no way to be safe anymore, if there ever was, but being smart about one's safety can improve the odds of not becoming a victim. One can sit home behind closed doors, but one still won't be safe. I consider it "luck of the draw", do everything you can to be winner, but...............

[BatDude]

First I chime in that it this not a topic that should be not addressed here as we are all from time to time on the road or some full time ergo somewhat at risk.

Generally, locations for such horrible events are localized so a heads up on an unsafe area is warranted and we all as an RV community benefit.

We did after 25+ years decide to leave Belize after an awesome life in the jungle as conservation biologists. We miss it daily with my wife doing big cats and me bats. We both also worked on birds and protected area planning throughout Central America. Hopefully the next generation can jump in and keep some of the habitats and critters from winking out into extinction.


It simply became unsafe for older ExPats who are always targets of younger nefarious folk. Same in the U.S. Most Boondockers are safe w/o issue. But if you chose to camp in areas with a lot of aggressive crime repoiorted... then be forewarned.

Yep there are those who remain blissfully ignorant of climate change and as more and more folks are displaced from where they live more and more of these sorts of things are likely to happen. As the quote goes “Science does not care if you believe it or not, the facts are facts.” Military folks have long indicated climate change is the greatest security threat to the nation. As we learned from a quarter of a century of living and working in the Third World even if you only have a small amount to your name e.g.U.S. $50 that is more than the drug crazed guy with $0 in his pocket so you are by default ALWAYS a target.

Sorry for the soap box diatribe. But reality does exist.

Bat Due - about to be censored again😉

[Jann Todd]

Originally Posted by Captleemo

https://www.foxnews.com/us/texas-dep...ered-rv-stolen
I just saw this on the news and thought I'd pass it on. Any info on RVers being preyed upon as they travel the country? This story was pretty horrific.

RV's stolen and taken to Mexico with the owners killed happens once in a while. Sometimes the owners are never found. This is so sad. This is one reason we don't go to southern Texas, Arizona or California near the border.

[Steve Outlaw]

Originally Posted by BatDude

...Yep there are those who remain blissfully ignorant of climate change and as more and more folks are displaced from where they live more and more of these sorts of things are likely to happen. As the quote goes “Science does not care if you believe it or not, the facts are facts.” Military folks have long indicated climate change is the greatest security threat to the nation. As we learned from a quarter of a century of living and working in the Third World even if you only have a small amount to your name e.g.U.S. $50 that is more than the drug crazed guy with $0 in his pocket so you are by default ALWAYS a target...

I'm curious about just WTH climate change has to do with the possibility of one of us incurring bodily harm or death while camping and how it is "...the greatest security threat to the nation."

[Glenn Baglo]

Originally Posted by Steve Outlaw

I'm curious about just WTH climate change has to do with the possibility of one of us incurring bodily harm or death while camping and how it is "...the greatest security threat to the nation."

Have you seen what's happening in California? Frontline had a terrific documentary recently about the fire that decimated Paradise. Dozens died in the flames, not just some couple who ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Authorities had plans to evacuate, but didn't have plans for a fire that moved so fast. They had plans to evacuate parts of Paradise. They didn't have plans or the roads to evacuate all of Paradise, all at once.


I've had to evacuate a campground after a lightening strike. Just left the trailer behind. My buddy has had to evacuate the same campground twice. Second time he and his wife and the others had to walk out on the other side of the river, leaving their trailers behind. The road out was on fire.


At least you can do something about climate change. Not likely you can stop some random attack while camping.

[k corbin]

Originally Posted by Captleemo

https://www.foxnews.com/us/texas-dep...ered-rv-stolen
I just saw this on the news and thought I'd pass it on. Any info on RVers being preyed upon as they travel the country? This story was pretty horrific.

Here is what happens. If you were at home and a stranger walked up right next to your home you would be very concerned. But when you are parked on the beach and strangers are everywhere and most people are acting like your new best friends you let your keep away stranger barriers down. Of course many people often are enjoying an adult beverage which also reduces inhibitions for talking to strangers.

[ThomasC]

Originally Posted by Daniel A.

Guess the only thing that surprises me is how risky it is for someone to do this considering the number of people in the USA packing guns for defence.

Even carrying a gun does not make you safe. If someone targets you, you may not have time to deploy your firearm. Carrying a gun gives you an edge in a bad situation and that is all.