If you plan to live there, I'd get the name and phone number of a public official(s) who you could call on your cell, or be perceived as calling, when stopped in the future. Ask around and actually visit an official. Carry a few officials' business cards with you. There's also the media.

Use and repeat the suspect cop's name when speaking to him, the one who stops you. Whether to take a pic or not would be your option.

People pay because of fear and/or being in a hurry. If you're not in a rush, I'd suggest refusing payment. But also be aware of your surroundings if you do go to a 'station'.

Very good idea! I'm leaving for MX in a few days and was wondering how to handle it. I lived in DF before, I always just gave them all that I had in my wallet. I also have a fake wallet with small bills. But I think I should bring a few old wallets with old cards and DL.

Hi sorry to say that you have done the completely wrong thing in that situation, all you have done by paying out money is made it harder for the next guy they pull. Here’s the correct way of doing things in the order that I use them, don’t feel too bad about it but learn from the experience.


When you get your visa for your next country, logon to the net and do a Google for the Embassy from your particular country, store it in your mobile phone.

WHEN you get stopped be nice smile a lot be DUMB, have a photo or two done with them and your bike, BUT NEVER speak to them in their own language. Got it you have to be completely THICK, being bi-lingual is NOT DUMB be as dumb as you can be.

Then IF they don’t back down (70% will) call YOUR embassy ask for anyone who can help you out of the situation give the policeman the phone, they will then tell the Police to f*ck the hell off in their own language saving you the trouble, after all it’s what you pay your taxes for. For those that don’t know the emphasis is for YOU to have the embassies phone number in case of emergencies, it’s a telephone number THAT could save your life in more ways than one, or save you doing time in prison.
Stand your ground and make a phone call it’s not hard and always works with scam artists, If on the other hand you are actually in the wrong the embassy will tell you so, if that’s the case then GO to the police station fill out the forms and pay your fine.

DON’T ever pay an on the spot fine EVER, you wouldn’t do it in your own country don’t do it in theirs.

I also have to take my whacks here as well because I did it once..... in Cambodia that was before I got smart and figured out the above, and that was only because I had a Cambodian bike without the little ‘P’ rivets in the number plate which is a fools give away and I didn’t know until that point. But after that experience I now just call the Embassy and ask for assistance it saves you time and lots of money.

Oh if you’re out of telephone range then just put your iPod on and sit against the nearest wall tree etc with a bottle of water and something to eat, it’s then a patience game of waiting and smiling. Once it’s been made clear you’re not paying up I bet they give you about 20 minutes and then wave you on your way.

Just think how it looks to passersby when you’re sitting there they will know the officers on the take, and think of how humiliating it is for the police officer a complete loss of face so he wount want you there any longer then need be.

Lee

I tell you a common expresion in spanish... Mexico lindo y querido!! Welcome to the paradise my friend...

You can ride a bike everyday in Mexico City without a problem. The law was changed changed a year or 2 ago. Before that you couldn't use your bike 1 day a week. Try to get a copy of the law or a note from a newspaper. I used to carry a copy with me but was never stopped once the law changed. I think having Mex plates helps as they know they can't pull a fast one which they did with you. You are not allowed to go on the Periferico or any other "high speed road" in the city. I was using Periferico everyday to get to work but the police seem a little less lenient recently so I am trying to avoid it, although I just came back from a trip this weeknd and used it from Xochimilco to San Angel. I got stopped 2 weeks ago coming back from the Sierra Gorda when I was on Periferico I spent a long time complaining but ended up giving them $80(pesos). It is a bummer having to bribe police but I did break the law.
You have to accept corruption as a way of life. It is much better than it used to be and if you have everything in order you won't have many problems. We are now in December which means the police are trying to get their Xmas bonus.
I am fluent in Spanish and playing the dumb foreigner doesn't work for me. Most Mexicans and probably all the police believe foreigners are loaded so I'd rather speak Spanish and be treated like a local which I basically am as I've been here 30 years.
I've put 8,000 miles on a V-strom in the last 5 months and have been stopped a couple of times for regular paper checks plus once on the Periferico as I mentioned before and once near Guadalajara for speeding (just a warning) I don't ride very fast but I normally ride faster than other road users and the posted limits. I think I would have had more problems and expense in the USA or England etc. so I'll live ith the corruption.

Thats what i was thinking, weighing the cost of giving the cop only $25 and my troubles are over, or actually going to the station...kinda risky if my suspicions were right and they were not actual cops. The thing is, i know there really is a program in DF like they described, i just don't know if it applied to me.
The true fines in Mexico are expensive and the bribes much cheaper. For example, a parking ticket can be $25, and driving in a bus lane over $100. The bribe for the latter is only $10. Truth is i didn't mind only paying $25 if i really was doing something wrong. I've dealt with corrupt police many times in L. America, usually just refusing to pay, playing the payaso and becoming their problem, but i feel this situation was a little different and a little more dangerous. Now i'm dealing with four guys instead of only one or two, and i don't believe they were cops either. Truth is i had no intention of going anywhere with these clowns, might end up in an alley somewhere with my brains bashed it...it's happened before. I like the ideas about meeting public officials, my new landlady works for the police, maybe i can get some leverage through her or her friends. The Embassy number is a good idea also, thanx for all the input.

Not seeming nervous or worried, and looking like you have communicated with someone via phone (real or fake) makes you seem less tasty to the vultures.

If you sense serious, dangerous problems, one idea is to walk out into traffic and create a disturbance, getting mucho attention.