Scammed at Bucharest rail station

On Feb. 3, ’04, a friend and I were victims of a scam in Bucharest, Romania, inside the main entrance to the Gare de Nord and outside of Wasteels Ticket Agency.

Persons entering the train station in Bucharest are required to have a rail ticket or to purchase a nominal ticket. As we entered at about 11 a.m., we were approached by two men who seemed to be officials because they showed I.D. cards (which, of course, we could not read).

They asked for our tickets, which we showed them. They did not speak English but indicated they also wanted to see the contents of our money belts. They then counted our bills, right in front of us.

It was not until we recounted our money that we both found they had taken $100 from each of us. By that time they had disappeared.

Both my friend and I have traveled to over 200 countries and, more than at the loss of the cash, we were chagrined that we had let this happen to us. We should have refused to show them our money and should have said, in a very loud voice, that we wanted the “Polizi.”

I hope that by publicizing this event, it will save someone else from a similar experience.

JACK SNEED
Orlando, FL