With Mexico already experiencing high crime rates, the COVID-19 pandemic seems to be pushing the limit and this time, looters are targeting one of the most feeble members of society - senior citizens.

Looters in Sonora have a new MO. They start patrolling the streets in an unmarked van and approach unknowing senior citizens. Sporting a medical attire and posing as medical staff from the Mexican Social Security Institute, they approach their victims discussing COVID-19 safety measures and once they feel that they have earned your trust, the impostors end their stint by rubbing a fake sanitizing gel on the victim's hands. It is in fact not even a gel but an oily substance used to slip rings and other jewelry off your hands and fingers. 

A very recent incident involves an 85-year-old lady who was innocently relaxing in front of her house. The thieves have robbed her of precious jewelry which she owned for almost 70 years. This left her devastated and with a pre-existing medical condition, she was so stressed out about the incident that she had to be brought to a nearby hospital.

None of these incidents involved actual medical personnel or staff from the Mexican Social Security Institute. 

Spike in Unemployment rate in Mexico

With most of the population quarantined at home and shops closed down, many fear that there will be a new wave of looting due to thousands have already lost their jobs because of the pandemic. As of April 2020, almost 350,000 Mexicans are now jobless. The biggest sectors hit by the coronavirus pandemic is the country's tourism sector which yielded almost 64,000 people jobless.

Stores that have been closed since the lockdown began, have been ransacked. Authorities are doing everything that they can to ramp up security while they battle the virus that has gravely affected the economy and the health of its citizens. 

In an interview last March, Mexico's Public Security Minister Maribel Cervantes has assured the public that she was working with ANTAD, a Mexican retailers' association to improve security.

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Working together to avoid an economic catastrophe

Quite a few countries are bonded economically. Such is the case of the U.S. and Mexico. Three-quarters of Mexico's exports are purchased by the United States amounting to almost $358 billion, making the U.S. its largest trading partner. It is also home to almost 11 million Mexicans whose remittances in 2019 amounted to almost $36 billion. 

Many poor families in Mexico depend on family members living in the US for financial support. The COVID-19 pandemic has already left 36 million people unemployed, 13% of those are Latinos who were mostly working in the hospitality industry. 

With remittance rates falling sharply and exports halted, as the U.S. crashes, Mexico is falling hard. Citizens of Mexico are afraid that this will lead to more public unrest and crime, and will push the majority of the population, especially those living on the poverty line over the edge.

President Obrador more commonly known as AMLO will have to work together with the public and business owners to avoid a dreaded economic catastrophe.