Crime in Tourism Destination - Essay Example

The magnitude of this crime has been increased y the fact that it is not only perpetrated by the locals, but also by foreigners from neighboring countries, who have immigrated to Turkey, considering that it is a relatively peaceful country. In the crowded streets of the major cities such as Istanbul and Izmir, pickpockets take advantage of the congestion of people to pick any valuable the tourists might have such as money, watches, cameras, and jewelry (Brosnahan, n.p.). The perpetrators of this crime have perfected this art by applying very unique tactics, which always leave the tourist lost and stranded.

These criminals can engage in a street fight which will cause passersby to stand and watch the fight, while their colleagues take the advantage of this situation to snatch bags, valuables, or pick from the pockets of the bystanders (Brosnahan, n.p.). The other technique applied by the perpetrators of this crime is engaging in a street chase, where few of them chase after one of their own, causing commotion and confusion in the streets. This leaves the tourists stranded due to the unusual scenes in a new environment, only to have the colleagues of these criminals pick from them or even snatch their bags and other valuables and then run to waiting by taxi, which takes off immediately (Brosnahan, n.p.).

Further tactics include a pretended collision between a stranger and a tourist, where the stranger pours some liquid on the tourists pretending it to be an accident, only to have the stranger pick from the tourists while pretending to wipe away the liquid. The same perpetrators of the crimes will engage in blocking the ways for tourists causing the tourists to be stranded, while others snatch or pick their valuables (Brosnahan, n.p.). They can also enter into tourist restaurants and snatch their wallets, bags, and purses and then run away.

Additionally, the perpetrators of the street crime have advanced their tactics, where they can use folksy dressed women and children to attract the attention of tourists by stopping them and requesting for some help, while their colleagues snatch the valuables away from the tourists (Brosnahan, n.p.). Street crime has affected tourism in Turkey as a popular destination negatively since it has caused fear among the tourists that they will end up being robbed or snatched off their valuables. This has kept the tourists away from this tourism destination.