Hello everyone, just got back from vacation in DR. Very nice vacation overall. Although everything is pricier now, specially around the holidays. I had a couple of bad experiences that left a sour taste in my mouth but with a Presidente the next day it went away.
This is what happened. On Friday the 23rd after dinner and a few Presidentes I dropped my friend in his Colonial Zone apartment. On my way back to Arroyo Hondo I take George Washington to make a right on A. Lincoln or Churchill. It is about 1:30AM or so. I am driving down the Ave and in front of me there is brand new Mercedes Benz with 3 guys drunk as HELL and then some. They are zig zagging on the street with music blasting. Me a tipical visitor, seatbelts on, signaling to turn right, behind them. I notice a cop car right behind us. As I approach A. Lincoln to turn right I signal, guess what the idiots in front of me decide to turn as well and stop halfway thru the turn to talk to some girls walking by. It was very dark. As soon as I start turning my wheel to go around them 3 cops in a car pull next to me as to block me and tell me to pull over. I start thinking in high speed "wait a minute, I am not speeding, i am wearing my seatbelts, did not run any lights, there are 3 drunk goons in front of me, the cops did not stop them, i am by myself, late at night, there are 3 cops, they do not look like cops if you know what i mean, SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT."
The cops tell me to pull over ahead. It is very dark in that area. I reply, what happened, what's going on? they ordered me in a bad tone to pull over. I asked them whay are you stopping me, why don't you stop the 3 drunk guys in the Mercedes. They get a little angry now and ordered me again to pull over ahead. At this point I said "well I am not pulling over if you did't pull the drunk squad why should I pull over, because there were 3 of them and I am only one, I don't think so"
So I stepped on the gas, this guys were so bold as to turn the cop lights and chase me, please like they could catch a cold on their best day. These guys were planning to hold me up that is my math.. They chased me for a little while and gave up when they saw they were in a more iluminated area, I saw them in my rear view mirror turn into a side street.
I was in DR for 3 weeks, and late at night cops want to stop anyone that looks like a tourist for shakedowns and hold ups. During my stay, this was not the only time I was stopped by cops. Just a few days ago, they had a checkpoint by Arroyo Hondo, at an intersection, they saw me a mile away and signal me to stop, they had shotguns out in hand, it was about 8PM there were people around so I stopped. As soon as I stopped they asked to open the door, looked inside, saw my diving gear, one cop behind the vehicle one next to me, not even 1 minute into the stop and they ask me how much money I was going to give them, so I gave them 300 pesos.
Thinking back, I got mad at myself for paying, because first of all, I did nothing wrong, second it is abuse, and third paying only perpetuates this behavior from the cops.
Overall my trip was great, but this experience tells me next time I go I have to be extremely careful. At least this time I was not asked for money at the airport.
This is what happened. On Friday the 23rd after dinner and a few Presidentes I dropped my friend in his Colonial Zone apartment. On my way back to Arroyo Hondo I take George Washington to make a right on A. Lincoln or Churchill. It is about 1:30AM or so. I am driving down the Ave and in front of me there is brand new Mercedes Benz with 3 guys drunk as HELL and then some. They are zig zagging on the street with music blasting. Me a tipical visitor, seatbelts on, signaling to turn right, behind them. I notice a cop car right behind us. As I approach A. Lincoln to turn right I signal, guess what the idiots in front of me decide to turn as well and stop halfway thru the turn to talk to some girls walking by. It was very dark. As soon as I start turning my wheel to go around them 3 cops in a car pull next to me as to block me and tell me to pull over. I start thinking in high speed "wait a minute, I am not speeding, i am wearing my seatbelts, did not run any lights, there are 3 drunk goons in front of me, the cops did not stop them, i am by myself, late at night, there are 3 cops, they do not look like cops if you know what i mean, SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT."
The cops tell me to pull over ahead. It is very dark in that area. I reply, what happened, what's going on? they ordered me in a bad tone to pull over. I asked them whay are you stopping me, why don't you stop the 3 drunk guys in the Mercedes. They get a little angry now and ordered me again to pull over ahead. At this point I said "well I am not pulling over if you did't pull the drunk squad why should I pull over, because there were 3 of them and I am only one, I don't think so"
So I stepped on the gas, this guys were so bold as to turn the cop lights and chase me, please like they could catch a cold on their best day. These guys were planning to hold me up that is my math.. They chased me for a little while and gave up when they saw they were in a more iluminated area, I saw them in my rear view mirror turn into a side street.
I was in DR for 3 weeks, and late at night cops want to stop anyone that looks like a tourist for shakedowns and hold ups. During my stay, this was not the only time I was stopped by cops. Just a few days ago, they had a checkpoint by Arroyo Hondo, at an intersection, they saw me a mile away and signal me to stop, they had shotguns out in hand, it was about 8PM there were people around so I stopped. As soon as I stopped they asked to open the door, looked inside, saw my diving gear, one cop behind the vehicle one next to me, not even 1 minute into the stop and they ask me how much money I was going to give them, so I gave them 300 pesos.
Thinking back, I got mad at myself for paying, because first of all, I did nothing wrong, second it is abuse, and third paying only perpetuates this behavior from the cops.
Overall my trip was great, but this experience tells me next time I go I have to be extremely careful. At least this time I was not asked for money at the airport.