Hi everyone,

Just a reminder about the crooked police just north of Lima, about 80 miles north of Lima if I remember correctly.
I had read about this place on the Hubb and was prepared. Sure 'nough they saw me coming. I was doing the rediculously slow 30kph (about 18mph) long before I entered the puebla of which I can't recall the name, sorry.
Anyway, my spanish is decent. They flagged me down yelling and waving their arms in the air "infraction! infraction"! They said I was speeding. Then they pulled out some 'official' book of infractions and fines. They said the fine was $1,000.00! But, if I paid on the spot I coould get by paying 'only 10%! Afterall, it was right there in the book.
I told them I wasn't speeding and had done nothing wrong. They then asked if I was traveling alone to which I stupidly replied that I was. I refused to budge. Then they asked for my passport. Again I refused to give it up, because then you truely are at their mercy.
They told me in that case I would have to leave my bike and all my gear there at the side of the road while we went 80kms back to the station house to sort this out.
There was no way I was leaving my bike on the side of the road, and they knew this. I was livid with anger. I told them i didn't have that much cash on me, they asked how much I had and I told them $30.00. They said the least they would except was $60.00.
Anyway, I ended up paying. I was furious and told them in spanish that they were crooked cops and that there was nothing worse than a crooked cop, this didn't faze them in the least.
I road away at 18mph, passed through the depressing puebla, and no less than ten minutes later another cop flagged me down as I was leaving the puebla, the same shit, running at me waving his arms so dramatically yelling "infraccion! infraccion"! I stopped, jumped off my bike, my 6'4" frame up against his 5'4" and proceeded to tear him a new asshole. He was totally taken aback and didn't know whether th shit or go blind. I called him a crook and told him if he wanted any money he'd better go see his friends at the othe end of the puebla! I then got on my bike and drove off, leaving him standing there with his lower jaw on the ground.
I don't recommend this tactic to anyone, in the end they've got the guns and you just know their superiors are getting a cut of the action so it wouldn't do much good to complain (I live in Mexico so I'm familiar with the mechanics of all this).
I'm just forwarding the story to relate my experience. I feel really bad for letting the side down. I know once one biker pays up it just makes it harder for the rest of us, but under the circumstances I fell I really had no choice. I later met a German biker who paid up $300.00!