The central region continues to be the most affected by cargo transportation robbery, with 62% of all robberies occurring in this area.
During the first half of the year, 10,246 cargo transportation robberies have been registered, robberies that are mainly committed on the country’s highways, a situation that could worsen due to the arrival of more companies to the country as a result of the nearshoring phenomenon.
According to Overhaul’s analysis of cargo theft, during the first quarter of the year a total of 5,68 robberies were recorded, while between April and June, 5,178 were reported, an increase of 2.1%.
Thus, during the first half of 2023, there were 10,246 cargo transportation robberies, i.e., an average of 1,707 criminal incidents per month. The figure is also almost half of the 20,131 robberies that were recorded during the whole of 2022.
However, a few weeks ago, Luis Enrique Villatoro, director of Supply Chain Security and Intelligence at Overhaul, told Excélsior that by the end of this year it is estimated that 21,000 to 23,000 robberies will have been committed, which is not only generating uncertainty in companies already operating in the country, but also in those that could arrive as a result of nearshoring.
If this forecast is fulfilled, there will be an increase of between 4.3% and 14.2% compared to the crimes committed last year.
Pie chart showing the type of transportation units that are most stolen by content.
In conference, Villatoro assured that at least 77% of the robberies committed are done while the cargo units are circulating on the highways, that is to say, they are intercepted by criminal groups, which seize the unit to later unload it in areas controlled by them. About 20% of these robberies are committed when the trucks are stopped, which demonstrates the lack of discipline on the part of the operators, as this occurs when the necessary security protocols are not followed.
The analysis also shows that the central region continues to be the most affected by this problem, as 62% of all cargo thefts occurred in this area, which includes the State of Mexico with 35% and Puebla with 20%, i.e., at least 50% of these crimes occur in both entities.
It is important to mention that during the first two quarters of the year, the western region, which includes the states of Aguascalientes, Colima, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, Querétaro and Zacatecas, also had a higher crime rate.
According to the executive, one of the most dangerous areas is the Northern Arc, since during the first quarter the State of Mexico and Hidalgo registered 27% of these robberies, 22% occurred in Tlaxcala and 14% in Puebla, while Tula, Calpulalpan, Tolcayuca and San Martin Texmelucan, showed the highest risk.
In this highway (Arco Norte) more violent modes of operation have been detected with at least six injured operators and one deceased in the first half of 2023.”
Key hours
According to their report, these crimes are mainly committed between 18:00 to 24:00 hours, a pattern that could be related to decreased visibility, fewer units in transit and less traffic on the roads at night.
In recent months, the most stolen goods are food and beverages with 30%, followed by construction and industrial materials with 12%, miscellaneous 12%, alcohol, clothing, footwear, electronics, chemicals, livestock, money in transit, among others.
The days with the highest number of robberies are working days, that is, Monday through Friday, of which Wednesday has become the most dangerous.
TYT Newsroom