Theft in Carrefour Villagio

thanks where is the nearest police station to Villagio?

It happen as I said on Friday around 7.40pm.

I'm really so sorry to hear such stories and really sad for your lose. Thank you for warning other people of such things, but it do happen all the time. I don't even take my wallet with me when I go to such places and I do go there when I really need something. These crowed places are not my favorite. I take this amount of money so I can make sure that nothing like that would happen and to buy what I was coming to the Villagio for. Going to these places with any amount of money, would let you spend more than what you really need.

So sorry again to hear about that and I hope that you would be getting over it soon. These security guys there have nothing to do but to tell you that they will inform you about any new thing that would happen. If you were having a doubt that you might drop that wallet or bag somewhere and you can't remember, then there is still hope that some good people will find it and give it to the security or the Carrefour management people. I'm so sorry that it was a thief who take that so why would he give it back after he steal it? :(

So sorry again and let god be with you, protect you from any thefts in the future and help you getting the new cards soon.

Best regards

I was just thinking maybe you're better off going to Capital Police, just off the Corniche.

Theft is a common thing in Qatar nowdays. My wallet has been stolen out of my pocket in Al Asmakh Mall (Centerpoint).

Luckily it was a wallet I just bought and there was only a couple of credit cards, which I stopped immediately.

I have friends whose car was broken into (it was parked on the Corniche) while they were having a walk.

In other words - don't relax. It is as bad as anywhere else. With armed robberies going on in Dubai, we should be prepared for things like this as well.

Dear All,

Ar-Rayyan Police Department is located north of Villaggio Mall & Aspire Zone in Zone 54 Muraikh, Circle 16 Muraikh, Ar-Rayyan municipality.

Maybe they do not use English.

I belive the forumer who posted in here last week has written to Gulf Times and his letter was published in yesterday's (22/04/07) edition

It seems like they are primarily striking on Friday, taking advantage of the chaos around.

My nanny had her bag stolen at Landmark some time back, so they pretty much target anybody.

I was at carrefour this morning, as I avoid shopping on the weekend. It's alot calmer and much easier to spot potential thieves.

It's sad that crime has risen here. It used to be such a safe place. The police are obviously not doing their jobs, and the security guards probably get paid peanuts anyway, so they probably don't care at all.

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Mahatma Gandhi

Even that is changing in Qatar to the worse :(((( every day I loose something in the country i felt in love with 5 years ago. People are becoming so consumed with material things and the gap in salaries between those from the west and rest is huge and making things even worse..... wherever there is social inaquality such things will happen

Disagree, lamea. There will always be classes in society and the lower classes will always covet things they can't afford.

While laborers in Doha do get the short end of the stick and much can be done to improve their, lot the majority of them are law-abiding and grit their teeth and bear the situation as best as they can. It is those who deserve our kindness and generosity.

Those who commit crimes have probably had previous experience back home and bring with them their unwanted and undesirable skills.

What's next, climbing over the walls of compounds during summer vacation when so many are presumably on leave? What if there's a lady alone at home?

I know you weren't justifying it.

No worries.

I hope they will modify their CCTV so it would include most the area!

coming from London I think, certainly in my case I have been lulled into a false sense of security perhaps we all have.

Its nice here to know that you can leave the Car or even the house unlocked and come back and still find it there.

I remember two weeks after I arrived here I went looking for cars, After an Hour I came back to see that I had left the front windows open car unlocked and luckily my digital camera was still on the Dash.

It would be a shame if this changed but I imagine this is inevitable, the country is growing fast and there will always be unsavory elements that move in with them.

I wouldn't be surprised if a more unsavoury element from around the GCC and Middle East is behind this probably seeing Qatar as a "soft touch".

I would not be so quick to blaame the labourers even though they are so poor. I think some may be desperate but they also need the jobs.

Respected Ladies & Gents,

As a Coolie, I object to the underlying message in many comments here that assume that we, the lowest strata of this society, are responsible for every act of thievery in this country. These are unsubstantiated allegations and it is deplorable that the literati of Qatar would resort to such blanket statements that further malign our stereotype. At the end of the day, my needs are the same as yours. On my days off, I come down to Doha for a picnic on some round-about with my mates. You lot leave the city on your Land Cruisers (lately Hummers) to go Dune Bashing. We eat Samosas and drink Pepsi from a 3 litre bottle; while you lot sip wine and nibble on barbecued lamb served with Artichoke & stuffed olives salad. You smell of Designer Perfume; I smell of honest sweat. Not all coolies are thieves; not all rich people are involved in "misappropriation of funds". Sure, we're different; but, not that different. I can live with the stigma of being Smelly, uneducated, etc. but, Thief is where I draw the line. I hope you understand. It's a lovely evening and it's time for my glass of After-shave. You lot enjoy your Gin & Tonics.
Cheers!

you didn't just say that did you... "I believe the new line of expatriates from south africa, Korea, thailand."

Excuse me... but most South Africans in Doha, work in QP, Sasol Chevron, or like me for a newspaper.... we are not in the habit of stalking out victims in shopping centres so we can rob them...

What about you guys from Aus... needing any extra cash?

sorry 2 hear about that...

i think there is a police station INSIDE VILLAGIO!
Nextto Zara by the door!!

http://hasous.spaces...

"missiles, warships and nuclear weapons cannot establish security. Instead they destroy what peace and security build." Anwar Sadat

Smelly- You smell someone who has already been around for a while in different avatars. Your half-[Let's not get blocked by the Telco]ed attempts of doing this is clear give away and you are anything but Indian.

Quiet lurker. Poor Contributer

Coolie that's brilliant! Can't you hold your rally in the Industrial area though and not the Corniche? Gypsy and the girls don't like you staring at them?

smelly indian get out of this thread, I can't read it because of your smell.
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thank you qatar

Hanna - Firstly, As much as I empathise with your situation I cannot still comprehend why you would leave a wallet full of credit cards and cash in your shopping cart. Do you do that back home? Sweden I'm not sure, but definitely not in the UK.

You do not need organised criminals to do this kind of stuff. It could just be an opportunity crime. With the current demographics and wage structure of Qatar, you can only expect to hear of more such incidents in the future.

Secondly, you'd do your (similarily misinformed) co-workers a great favour by taking up this incident at your workplace (maybe at the next months townhall meeting, or during a safety moment)

Also, do not expect much help from these "security guards". They are no more than labourers in pressed white uniforms. For their level of skills and for what they are paid, you cannot expect them to do anymore than just stand on their two feet for a 8-12 hr shift.

Smelly Indian Coolie - I really enjoyed reading your posts. I've not heard that (almost obsolete) term coolie for a while now.

Coolie...havent heard that term since i left South Africa, its still widely used there in our excessively segrated society.

Beautifully written and as if to perpetuate the western stereotypical attitude that we have towards indian labourers we immediately chastise the man or women for his or her impeccable vocabulary and prose and blatantly accuse this person of falsly claiming their racial heritage....

Thank goodness for the old Oxford English dictionary....no way an ignorant boer could come up with all those big words and even have a remote chance of spelling them correctly...myself that is.

I say bravo to the smelly indian coolie...well put old chap...tally ho and all that....

Thank you for all the appreciative comments; one can always do with the love:)
Peace

Haj san, Jag försoka skriva på svenska,.Jag från Finland,kan prata lite svenska.eller dåliga skriva svenska.Men ja resor insome till doha .nexta veckor frst gång vara på 6 dagar lidig from men jobbet.so..velket "Highly Recomended" spots so jag can visök..OK jag föstor om du skrive svenska .jag lasa bladet varja dag jag föstors ok.Tack so mucket...och förlot mej men sveska skrive..jag vara ova.nåasta gong kanske bettre.....

Finlyn why on earth do you try to write in Swedish????
For all I know you might as well have written in Finnish,since people probably don't understand either.

Tar hand om dig.

Finlyn, you did not offend me at all. I was just a bit surprised to see Swedish on this site.
I did not see you were writing to a particular person, my apologies.

Har det sa bra ocksa.

No worries...............

"Even today Lakshmi Mittal is considered the richest Indian in Britain.." Actually according to Forbes he's currently the 3rd richest in the world.

But, this does not change the fact that most labourers here in Qatar are either Nepalese, Bangladeshi or Indian.

I think think most people obsessed with the "White Race" are those of other races....

Coz of the egocentric white race.....

I'm more pink than white...I tried to tan but I was rejected by the sun...damned racist star...

Y'know Shavonne this was the weirdest thing... I was listening to the radio which was streaming through my computer, and I swear it looked like your dancing girl was dancing in time to the music!

Thanks alot for posting this, it is the first time I hear something like this

There are sexual predators and there have been "incidents" in the past. I'd never let my kids out of my sight. But when kids are sent to the mall, movies or whatever with a driver and maid what do you expect.

go home and play with some sheep - have you forgotten that Australia is a nation bred from convicts. One of the original penal colonies. One thing i can say is that you are a nation of fantastic sportsmen, probably due to the theory of "survival of the fittest". Only the really tough criminals managed to survive the boatride from the uk to Aus.so strong genes abound. Problem is you have no class!!! Bad attitude, foul mouth and seriously racist. Why bother coming to a foreign country if u are so bloody intolerant and racist. I see u haven't been here very long - funny how when u arrived the crime rate began to soar. By the way i hope South Africa give u a hiding in the Super 14. JERK!

I don't thnk your comments was for this forum topic if it was then I think you have got you wired mixed matey..

I don't think your comments was for this forum topic if it was then I think you have got you wired up mixed matey..

Carrefour was the first store to be opened in Villaggio Mall.
There was two gates that were opened for customers. One was right on front of Carrefour. The other was on the back of the mall.

Was just reading up on this thread.

About 2 weeks ago, my Mac book pro laptop, ipod and sunglasses were stolen from my pathfinder parked at the Sheraton Hotel.

Ironically it was parked beside the security post.

A window of one of the passenger seats was broken. If you've seen a Pathfinder closely you'd have noticed that the passenger side of the window has 2 glass windows (one big n one small .. Only the big part slides down when the window opened)

The smaller glass of the window was shattered. And the security claim to have seen nothing...

Frickin absolutely ridiculous ....

A complaint has been registered with the police .. But no word till now.

Sorry to hear that. Maybe keeping electronics in your vehicles in a country with hard climate is not good idea.

Im living in alkhor in the companys managers villas ! 3 month ago we had an incedent that some ppl got in all villas took everything that has a value like personal laptops videocams dvd players mobile phones digicams just everything handy they could take and not only that, they opened the fridges and throw everything out of it. that was in totla of 8 villas. noone seen no finger prints nothing as a proof or even a witness. 3 weeks later they tried to do it again but how fool are we to leave our stuff again their? but this time the CID catched them and i didnt belive what i heard ... 3 young guyz where involved and latley we found out that these guyz had washed out all they neighbors 2 they took ones car and the others TV etc. we got all our satuff back except some small stuf they could sell.

A guy doesnt have his bath. Does not use water and has his underwear smeared and stained with poop.

yea true, 9 years ago you dont see or even hear about these kinda things. you dont even have to lock your doors at night, that's how safe doha was in the old days.

hmmph, sometimes i kinda miss the old doha =\

Let us be satisfied with the Earthy materials that we have. Let us look at people who are less than us regarding the Earthy materials they have.

First and foremost, thank you for this thread. While I am genuinely sorry to hear of those who have fallen victim to theft in Doha, I am also one of those people who takes lessons from others. I will definitely not 1. Leave anything of value unattended while shopping; 2. Leave anything of value in my car.

****

In addressing the whole issue which has arisen through the bit of racial profiling for thieves, anyone can be a thief. There are white American people who should have their hands chopped off. I really like the law in places like Saudi Arabia, where your second or third repeat offense means you get your hand chopped off. Those people don't mess around like they do in the States and give thieves a mere slap on the hand and 3 months' probation. *That's* something I can get behind. Theft is to be abhorred, as are the people who engage in it.

I quite happily left the United States in order to escape the 'xenophobic stereotyping of nationalities' craze which has taken the States by storm. I certainly did not come to Qatar to engage in the same destructive and narrow-minded behavior. Part of what drew me to Doha was the opportunity to meet people from so many different countries, and walks of life.

I saw a similar thing when I lived in Arizona, where it was assumed that it's Mexicans who steal your car, sell drugs, and rape your daughter. The xenophobic bitter white Americans I encountered who thought this somehow managed to overlook the white teenagers who sold drugs on the street corner just blocks from the University of Arizona. Yeah, those sketchy-looking white folk must *definitely* be Mexicans in disguise.

You have to be careful, I've learned. Not all whites think Indian people, or black South Africans, or Filipinos, or whoever else you wish to throw in the mix, are thieves. I certainly don't. *Anyone* who dares to nick my stuff, no matter the reason, ought to be drug into the street and bludgeoned with large stones.

At the same time, it shouldn't be assumed that all white people live high on the hog either, and exist merely so the so-called 'lower' races can wait on them hand and foot. I for one am embarrassed that someone pumps my gas, and someone else insists upon bringing me coffee and water at the office, and someone else emptys my trash. It's as though I'm completely incapable of doing these things myself as a young white female. I tried to pump my own gas recently and was shouted at for touching the pump. Okey dokey...

Quite unfortunately, it is the people from India, and Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, and the Philippines, who are willing to do these jobs. After all, as was stated already here, the average 'privileged' white certainly wouldn't. It's the same situation in the States. A lot of Mexicans come across the border and get jobs as farm workers, or housekeeping, or whatever menial job you can think of. Our minimum wage is a king's ransom in Mexico, so Mexican people will do the 'crappy' jobs in order to give their families a little better quality of life.

The same thing happens here. I read an article in the IHT a week or two ago about Indian people who come to Qatar to earn money to send to their families, who cannot join them in Qatar due to the high costs or visa restrictions/prohibitions or what have you.

Don't think, though, that white people have never done the 'menial' labor either. I've done my share to get myself through school, to get to where I am now. Cleaning toilets, lifting boxes, digging holes by hand to plant shrubs, picking potatoes, picking rocks, shelving books, locating books, all those things and more. I may have a good job now, but I don't forget where I came from or what I did to get here.

Heh. It's interesting what you learn about the world when you're willing to get off the front porch and go see it for yourself.

ETA--I made an errir, and typed the profanity I was thinking of, forgetting forum rules briefly. Mea Culpa.

I am sorry to hear that!
But I am surprised why you didn’t take the purse to any police station in Doha! There must be finger prints on it! And you know the Qatari police keep a record of all expatriates finger prints! They will definitely come to know who he was!

He'd better give it a try! That is the only solution! Even if he was going to the police station they'd have suggested the same thing according to my experiences!