There are some rough neighborhoods in Brazil, Somalia, South Africa, and many other countries. But the answer lies in Mexico.
In fact, the five cities with the highest crime rates in the world are all in Mexico, so I analyzed those cities first. Tijuana is the clear leader, most notably averaging over 134 homicides per 100,000 population annually.
In 2021, Tijuana’s Sánchez Taboada neighborhood is probably the world’s worst by all accounts. This area averages more than two homicides a day amongst a fairly modest population, a violent crime rate even worse than notorious places like Renacimiento in Acapulco, Mexico, or the State Street area in East St. Louis, Illinois, or Petare in Caracas, Venezuela, or even the scariest areas of Kabul, Afghanistan.
The newspaper El Universal describes Sánchez Taboada as “the most dangerous neighborhood in the country’s most dangerous city.” The area is named for the Mexican politician Rodolfo Sánchez Taboada who died in 1955.
Residents of Sánchez Taboada speak of violence being a normal thing. Police patrol the streets with bulletproof vests and reinforced vehicles because gang members aren’t afraid of them. Sometimes, a crime scene only contains a severed head, a clear message to others to mind their own business.
In fact, at 2:00 a.m. on May 22, 2021, a bag hanging from a bridge (seen below) in this very neighborhood contained a human head and a warning for the rival Tijuana New Generation Cartel gang.
Locals hear gunshots daily, but they don’t call the police who are often helpless or are sometimes corrupt and more dangerous than the criminals themselves.
When one resident pressed the Tijuana Attorney General’s Office to help search for her brother who has been kidnapped, they threatened to take her children away rather than help.
Terrifying groups like the Sinaloa Cartel and Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación rule the area. Drug dealers even sell crystal meth at local convenience stores. The rough roads are not maintained and many don’t even have names.
After El Chapo of the Sinaloa Cartel was famously extradited in 2017, the resulting power vacuum increased the already horrific violence. The neighborhood is simply a nightmare.
