This Article is From Dec 21, 2013

Three foreign women robbed in Goa

Panaji: Three women tourists - two Russians and a German - have complained of robbery and burglary in two popular beach villages in Goa.

The Russians were robbed near Calangute beach, and the German near Anjuna beach.

Nataliya Firppovskaia, a Russian national, complained that some people broke into her rented room near Calangute and stole three mobile phones and her passport.

Vera C, a Russian, said an unknown person snatched her bag, which had $2,000 and her passport, at Calangute.

German national, Scheao Hebert, told police that her home in Anjuna was broken into, and cash of Rs.60,000 and 5,000 Euros were stolen.

All three robberies occurred Friday night.

Calangute beach, where the two Russians were robbed, is 35 km south of Panaji.

Anjuna, where the German complained of being burgled, is 25 km north of the state capital.

These incidents highlight the vulnerability of foreign women travelling in Goa.

An advisory issued by the British government has cautioned women tourists, asking them to be on their guard against theft in specific areas in the coastal belt of north Goa.

Goa's beaches attract three million tourists annually, including half a million foreigners.

The beaches have gained infamy in the global media following the murder of a British teenager, Scarlett Keeling, at Anjuna in 2008.

There have also been other reports in the international media of the beach state as a narco-tourism destination.
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