Amigos de la Policia
The police in Granada are part of the Nicaragua national police and do not work for the city of Granada. This makes it even more important for our community of tourists, residents, citizens and businesses to enjoy an amiable relation with them. Working together we can develop that relationship and assist each other to create a safer environment. The Amigos de la Policia was formed to develop that relationship and is composed of residents, citizens, businesses and expatriates.
If a resident of Granada or someone having a business in Granada, please consider joining our organization. We welcome everyone as a member and need active community-minded residents to join our board to further strengthen our relations with the local police.
Amigos de la Policia
Darrell Bushnell 8616-7310 bushamy13@yahoo.com
Granada Police Phone Numbers
The numbers at the Granada police switchboard are:
2552-2929 2552-2977 cel 8809 5105 - All in Spanish.
8391-5997 Tourist Police
8464-0122 Lt. Amaru Alfaro - English and Spanish
8971-4268 2nd Chief Francisco Sanchez – Spanish
You can also call 118 free from any cel phone (Spanish spoken). And 101 from Claro phones also free ( English and Spanish Spoken)
DB - No one has a higher opinion of the police than I do but..... it can sometimes be difficult to get someone to answer the phone. That's why your property taxes are very low. The 3 digit phone numbers go to Managua then they forward the call to Granada.
Recommendations
Avoid locations with poor lighting or where there are few people, especially when alone. Stay alert and beware of your surroundings. Thieves often work in pairs with one distracting their victims. Thieves on bicycles may ride past their victims and circle back before making a grab for a purse or camera.
Avoid displaying signs of wealth such as flashy jewelry, expensive cameras or large sums of cash. Petty theft is common but it is usually initiated by the opportunity. Never leave luggage, bags, laptops, purses or cameras in public places. And NEVER hang your bag, purse or camera on the back of your chair at a restaurant – especially an outdoor restaurant. Keep your important stuff at home or in the hotel – it’s much safer there than in your pocket on the street.
Never leave anything of value in a parked car, even if it’s locked. It invites opportunity.
For valuable items, keep a list of essential information such as brand, description and serial number somewhere safe in case that luggage or item is stolen. The police will not return recovered stolen items without a unique description and/or the serial number.
Do not trust people that approach you simply because they speak your language. There have been instances of people posing as tourist guides.
It is recommended not to give money or other items to beggars. Often, they are children being used by adults and the money may be used for illicit activities.
Take a cab at night and have the cab wait a few seconds while you open the door to your house or enter your hotel. It’s good to have a cab driver in town who you trust and can call in a pinch.
Pickpockets are always working where there are crowds and they are good at what they do. If attending street festivals. markets or other crowded events, do not carry valuable items or large amounts of cash.
Steer clear of overly friendly street walkers who try to befriend you.
Mission-Amigos de la Policia
Reduce crime through community involvement and partnering with the local police. Make effective use of the talents, abilities and resources available within the community and the local police.
Three essential components to achieving this are:
Problem solving identifies the specific concerns that community members feel are most threatening to their safety and well-being. These areas of concern then become priorities for joint police-community discussions, interventions and solutions.
Recognition that changes are necessary is essential to forging community-police partnerships and implementing problem-solving activities. Without change, the present situation will continue and perhaps become worse.
Goals
To work as a community in partnership with local police to reduce crime and create safer communities for all residents and visitors to Granada .
To develop solutions that achieve real and measurable outcomes.
To identify local crime problems and community safety priorities.
To work with the local police and the community to provide a program of trust, education and outreach.
To Join Amigos de la Policia
The present dues are $50 per year. Contact any board member to join.
Board members receive no pay and all proceeds go to the associated programs.
Present Situation
In 2012 a new police chief took over and we are very impressed with her. We are working with her to improve response times and relations with the community. Formal English classes are now being conducted for the tourist police and we expect to see more police patrolling the streets of Granada.
To be fair, the expat community is not very supportive of community efforts in general. With more people moving here we hope this will change.
To be sure, their resources are minimal in manpower, training and necessary materials. This is not a problem solely for the expatriates since the Granada citizens experience the same issues.
Programs in Place or in Progress
We provide gas each month for the police vehicles and motorcycles.
We have purchased two motorcycles directly for them and three more in conjunction with the mayor's office.
We are providing English classes for any police person wishing or needing the training, certainly for the tourist police.
If a resident of Granada or someone having a business in Granada, please consider joining our organization. We welcome everyone as a member and need active community-minded residents to join our board to further strengthen our relations with the local police.
Amigos de la Policia
Darrell Bushnell 8616-7310 bushamy13@yahoo.com
Granada Police Phone Numbers
The numbers at the Granada police switchboard are:
2552-2929 2552-2977 cel 8809 5105 - All in Spanish.
8391-5997 Tourist Police
8464-0122 Lt. Amaru Alfaro - English and Spanish
8971-4268 2nd Chief Francisco Sanchez – Spanish
You can also call 118 free from any cel phone (Spanish spoken). And 101 from Claro phones also free ( English and Spanish Spoken)
DB - No one has a higher opinion of the police than I do but..... it can sometimes be difficult to get someone to answer the phone. That's why your property taxes are very low. The 3 digit phone numbers go to Managua then they forward the call to Granada.
Recommendations
Avoid locations with poor lighting or where there are few people, especially when alone. Stay alert and beware of your surroundings. Thieves often work in pairs with one distracting their victims. Thieves on bicycles may ride past their victims and circle back before making a grab for a purse or camera.
Avoid displaying signs of wealth such as flashy jewelry, expensive cameras or large sums of cash. Petty theft is common but it is usually initiated by the opportunity. Never leave luggage, bags, laptops, purses or cameras in public places. And NEVER hang your bag, purse or camera on the back of your chair at a restaurant – especially an outdoor restaurant. Keep your important stuff at home or in the hotel – it’s much safer there than in your pocket on the street.
Never leave anything of value in a parked car, even if it’s locked. It invites opportunity.
For valuable items, keep a list of essential information such as brand, description and serial number somewhere safe in case that luggage or item is stolen. The police will not return recovered stolen items without a unique description and/or the serial number.
Do not trust people that approach you simply because they speak your language. There have been instances of people posing as tourist guides.
It is recommended not to give money or other items to beggars. Often, they are children being used by adults and the money may be used for illicit activities.
Take a cab at night and have the cab wait a few seconds while you open the door to your house or enter your hotel. It’s good to have a cab driver in town who you trust and can call in a pinch.
Pickpockets are always working where there are crowds and they are good at what they do. If attending street festivals. markets or other crowded events, do not carry valuable items or large amounts of cash.
Steer clear of overly friendly street walkers who try to befriend you.
Mission-Amigos de la Policia
Reduce crime through community involvement and partnering with the local police. Make effective use of the talents, abilities and resources available within the community and the local police.
Three essential components to achieving this are:
- community partnership
- problem solving
- recognition that changes are necessary
Problem solving identifies the specific concerns that community members feel are most threatening to their safety and well-being. These areas of concern then become priorities for joint police-community discussions, interventions and solutions.
Recognition that changes are necessary is essential to forging community-police partnerships and implementing problem-solving activities. Without change, the present situation will continue and perhaps become worse.
Goals
To work as a community in partnership with local police to reduce crime and create safer communities for all residents and visitors to Granada .
To develop solutions that achieve real and measurable outcomes.
To identify local crime problems and community safety priorities.
To work with the local police and the community to provide a program of trust, education and outreach.
To Join Amigos de la Policia
The present dues are $50 per year. Contact any board member to join.
Board members receive no pay and all proceeds go to the associated programs.
Present Situation
In 2012 a new police chief took over and we are very impressed with her. We are working with her to improve response times and relations with the community. Formal English classes are now being conducted for the tourist police and we expect to see more police patrolling the streets of Granada.
To be fair, the expat community is not very supportive of community efforts in general. With more people moving here we hope this will change.
To be sure, their resources are minimal in manpower, training and necessary materials. This is not a problem solely for the expatriates since the Granada citizens experience the same issues.
Programs in Place or in Progress
We provide gas each month for the police vehicles and motorcycles.
We have purchased two motorcycles directly for them and three more in conjunction with the mayor's office.
We are providing English classes for any police person wishing or needing the training, certainly for the tourist police.
