According to a Fox News report, crime in Rio de Janiero has increased since it played host to this year's World Cup. Rio, being the capital of Brazil and arguably the most popular among the twelve cities assigned to host the tournament matches, would be the place to go for World Cup fans who wish to catch their favorite teams' games. Unfortunately, the Brazilian capital is also becoming a heaven for muggers, especially in the famous Copacabana area at a 60% crime increase rate.
Although statistics will not be out until the next few months, majority of the embassies, including the US, has issued a travel advisory warning their citizens to be wary on robberies on city buses, cash machines and in banks.
American fan Jack Smith had fallen victim to a classic identity theft. When Smith used his card at an ATM in a Rio airport, it was too late for him to discover that his account was already debited for $12,000 over the next several days following his cash withdrawal. He told Fox News that his bank would be covering for the unscrupulous debit.
The Knoxville, Tennessee-based fan said, joking, "I've probably met 60 people here, and 20 have been hit. Of course these were for smaller amounts, although somebody told me they were out $6,000. But I'm scared. I won't ever use an ATM machine here. Maybe this is a Brazilian tax of some kind I have to pay."
On the other hand, Smith's case is no laughing matter. Mexico-based Citizen Council for Public Safety and Criminal Justice has listed 15 cities in Brazil as among the 50 most dangerous cities in the world. Rio state governor Luiz Fernando Pezao has been quoted as saying that the crime fight in the capital has been "a war."
The US Embassy estimated that around 80,000-90,000 Americans had flown to the tropical country for the World Cup, which is 10 times more than the usual for this time of the year.
Yolanda Parra, who is coordinating World Cup activities for the United States embassy's consular service in the capital Brasilia, said, "We've seen an uptick in lost passports, but given the number of visitors we have it's a really small percentage. But there's still a couple more weeks to go."
