A 49-year-old Jiu-jitsu practitioner was on a vacation in Mexico with his wife. A group of pickpockets targeted the middle-aged couple when the two were sitting in a café. The thieves did the old pass-around and managed to get the wife’s wallet. The man, who is a white belt in jiu-jitsu managed to catch one thief and used his skill to bring him down.
The man also claimed he has higher belts in other martial arts. He also explained the full story in detail.
“I’m only a white belt in BJJ, but even I know that a better head-and-arm choke position would be for me to use my head to press his own deltoid against the carotid artery on that side, but he was bleeding from the mouth, and I was comfortable holding him with my head at that distance. In addition, I wanted him to maintain consciousness so that the police could ask him about the wallet. Also, I didn’t want to get more blood and dust on my stylish jacket.” said the man lightly.
The couple did not press charge because they felt pity for the thieves and the fact that there’s nothing important in that wallet.
A patron in that café followed one of the thieves who escaped and saw her get into a getaway vehicle. He gave the license plate number to the police who found the car on a security camera and saw her throw the wallet out of the car. The police managed to retrieve the wallet.
The story originated on reddit:
First of all – Mexico City is an Amazing City – and we will definitely be back!
It is generally safe, but we had a run-in with petty theft:
This unfortunate man is part of a network of at least 4 thieves who stole my wife’s wallet from her bag, while we were seated at a cafe in Roma, Mexico City. They did the old pass-around, and I was certain that one of the female thieves had the wallet, but I was not sure how it would look if I had dragged her to the ground, so this man had to suffer.
We did NOT press charges – mainly because we felt sorry for this man. Petty criminals do not bother me as much as the truly evil people in the world, who are doing much worse things than this man (stealing wallets with no cash in them, and soon-to-be-canceled credit cards).
Also, he thought he was dying – you can hear me telling him “It’s okay,” over and over – and even patting him on his lower back at the very end. I wanted him to know that better days were in front of him.
He just picked the wrong targets. I look like just a normal dude. My wife also does martial arts – I just got to him first.
I’m only a white belt in BJJ (I have a higher belt in another martial art), but even I know that a better head-and-arm choke position would be for me to use my head to press his own deltoid against the carotid artery on that side, but he was bleeding from the mouth, and I was comfortable holding him with my head at that distance. In addition, I wanted him to maintain consciousness, so that the police could ask him about the wallet. Also, I didn’t want to get more blood and dust on my stylish jacket.
We also did not press charges because we got the wallet back! Here’s how it happened:
Another patron of the cafe (I got the story directly from him afterward) followed one of the other thieves and saw her get into a waiting Mazda. He gave the license plate number to la policia, who found the car on a security camera, and saw her throw the wallet out of the car, tied up in a black plastic bag. La policia retrieved this bag, and returned our wallet to us within 45 minutes. Bravo private citizen! Bravo Departamento de Policía de la Ciudad de México División Roma! Muchas Gracias!
My wife knew something wasn’t right about the three thieves sitting next to us. Always trust your intuition! The cafe staff alerted us to what was really going on in this confusing situation, and really helped us out. Thank you to the amazing staff at the Boicot Cafe!
If you are considering visiting Mexico City, definitely do so! I know I will be back. I was never afraid for my personal safety.
99.9 % of the people will look out for you! They are the most polite and courteous people I have ever met, and the food is outstanding!
Ezra Samuel is a passionate freelance writer with a particular love for covering MMA news. His interest in the sport dates back to his college days, and he has since established himself as a respected voice in the MMA community. Over the years, Ezra has contributed his writing to a variety of digital outlets, including the popular site calfkicker.