Dear Susan,
Boquete is known as one of the safest towns in the nation (which is one of the safest nations in Central America). Of course no place on earth is completely crime free and in Boquete break-ins are the most common crimes. Crime in Boquete tends to be non-confrontational crimes of opportunity. A laptop visible via an unguarded window is the kind of temptation residents should avoid providing. Having bars on the windows is common all over Panama (I have had them everywhere I have lived unless in a skyscraper) because it’s a good deterrent. A petty thief will bypass a home with visible security.
Violent crime is very uncommon in Boquete.
Expats and locals have created a neighborhood watch program called Alto al Crimen (Halting Crime). People in Boquete are extremely active in bettering/watching out for their community. People are encouraged to report even the most minor of crimes (and can do so easily and quickly online). My understanding is that there as a spike in break-ins in 2008 and the community and law enforcement rallied and was successful in quashing it. You can ask questions at Alto al Crimen’s website, just type Alto al Crimen Boquete into your browser’s search field.
Unfortunately government statistics for the entire province of Chiriqui don’t show a break-down by district and that’s too bad because an average for the province will fail to reflect good and bad areas. For example the provincial capital is the city of David and it has some high crime areas around the airport that might increase the provincial average while Boquete balances at the other end of the scale, if that makes sense.
Hope this helps,
Best,
Jessica
IL Panama editor
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