Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

So, today "someone attacked me in a sexual way" (I am using quotes because the incident was really "mild" - but still, what is this city coming to...?)

This is the exact email I sent to the Kantonpolizei:

I wanted to add that I am 29 years old and reasonably fit (but the guy was really fast).

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

If you compare the criminal statistics with other cities abroad, then you'll realize, that it is not all that save indeed.

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

He was probably trying to pickpocket you

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Have you checked your wallet and cards?

Cheers,
Nick

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

I was going to ask if you were male or female, but then I figured that a guy wouldn't report being hugged, nor suggest that a hug have a sexual nature.

I guess it's a bit of a surprising thing to happen. My reflex would be violence, but that's just me ...

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

I was so angry that I omitted the basic information:
First, I am indeed a girl.
Second, I was out running (in sports clothes) and was not carrying anything valuable (apart from my key and my GA).
So I am positive that the goal was not to pickpocket me.

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Assassin, I *wish* I had been fast enough for violence (I am so inclined - mentally).
Somehow, I am very disappointed at myself for being so slow to react. I even heard running footsteps approaching me at the staircase of the tram station several seconds before he grappled me. But I just assumed someone was really in a hurry to get to the tram, or just running sprints!

Grrr

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

I think I have to buy and read THIS book

http://media.buch.de/img-adb/1747048...e_falschen.jpg;):D

There apparently are more weird people around than expected. And that the chap is so young is the disturbing thing.

HOWEVER

At the other end, he possibly made a bet that he would do "it" as described, and found the matter even exceedingly weird. Who knows....

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

...well you knew that you didn't have anything valuable on you...but the guy probably didn't...
I'm happy for you it wasn't worse in the end.:)

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopo...mage/image.jpg
Is this the SOB ? :p

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Unfortunately not!

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

No way was this young fellow trying to pickpocket you. This was an act of violation and of course you weren't prepared to react. Who could be prepared for something like this? :eek:

When I was a teen growing up near NYC, I remember walking down the street with a group of friends and a similar-aged boy going past me grabbed my crotch for a moment and then he and his buddies walked away laughing. It was so quick my friends didn't even notice but I was completely shocked.

Apparently, there is a term for this act, but now I've forgotten it.

As a woman runner, you have to be extra wary I'm afraid. In Colorado a smallish person has to be careful running because it gets the mountain lions excited for a chase. Unfortunately, some people react similarly. I've been a runner my whole life. I'd never give up that freedom and that's part of what I love about CH because I do feel much safer here overall. But you have to listen to your sixth sense.

I'm sorry this terrible thing happened to you. Give yourself some extra pampering and time to recover. It may take a little while, but you'll feel better about the situation with some support from your friends.

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Couldn't have said it better. You have every right to feel violated. It happened too quickly for you to react immediately and writing to the police was the correct thing to do.

When I was pregnant and shopping at the mall many years ago, a child of Balkan descent came up to me and punched me in the stomach, gave me a look of despair and then walked away. The punch wasn't hard enough to do any harm and I couldn't help but think how much pain that child had been through to do something like that.

Why don't men just stick to porn and punching bags instead of acting out their fantasies?

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

No city is completely safe. Statistically a low crime rate here in switzerland, but that obviously does not mean crime will not happen.

As your name is "tryingtolikech" it does suggest that you are maybe not always comfortable here (at least when you named yourself!), and this event will not help. But it is very possible to like CH. I love it. I have been here for ten years and so far had little trouble except an apartment break in (also a very violating feeling I can say).

However, how about this. The murder rate in Zurich hovers around 50 per year. For london it is around 140 per year. So in that case, as london is many times bigger than zurich, then in zurich there are about 3x as many murders per head of population as in London. It is not just that Zurich is dangerous and london not (relatively speaking).... the same approximate ratio holds also for several other places in Europe, such as Lisbon. Most people expect it to be the other way around... many more murders in london. I too was surprised.

Shocking? Depends. The big majority of murders happen between people who know each other. So you are very unlikely to be part of that statistic through jogging around Zurich.

Im not a morbid person. The reason I know this is because a few weeks ago I was in Juarez in mexico. Population is the same as zurich. 3100 murders in 2010 (mostly drug cartel related). This prompted me to look into murder rates in general during a quiet moment. Two final stats: UK as a whole, around 800 per year. USA: 16,000 pa. Sounds like a salary rather than a murder rate.

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Seeing as the populations of Greater London and Switzerland are comparable (7-ish million), it might be better looking at crime rates for these two instead of Zurich and London.

I agree you get nutters everywhere and whereas the incident described by the OP was unpleasant at least she managed to get away unharmed and just hopping mad.

It's easy to start pointing fingers and saying "Everyone told me Switzerland was crime free before I came here" but I think you have to take it with a huge pinch of reality.

There was a brutal murder on the remote further reaches of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland a couple of weeks ago and one of the main points they were making was that it is normally "crime free" and "the last murder had been in 1964". It's so easy to make people complacent and I think that's what happens with expats here which, in turn, could possibly make them easy-pickings.

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

I don't think it's only the expats Sandgrounder, I think the locals are just as complacent as us, if not even more. My wife, a local, thinks no crime exists here whatsover. As a person who grew up where there is more crime than here, I'm much more careful than her.

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Similar version of this happened to me when I was about 11 or 12 years-old in Britain. Some guys were walking toward me and they said something obscene I won't write here, before one reached out to grab my breasts. They thought it was funny. I just felt stupid and embarrassed.

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Eep. I am glad you were okay. How did the police respond to your complaint at the time?

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Crikey! Sometimes I wish owning and using a taser gun is legal here. Would love to carry it in my hand during rush hour for people who dont get out of the way and for perverts like this.

I am so sorry to hear about that incident. Doesnt sound like he was trying to pickpocket you. Its just really unfortunate to experience a violation like that. I would have been livid afterwards :(

Do let us know how the police respond.

Re: Weird incident (is Zurich really that safe?)
 

Switzerland is relatively safe compared to most other places in the world. That being said, no matter how safe a place is, there is always some idiot who does stuff like this. :mad:
And if the victim happens to be someone new to the country, it paints a bad picture.

OP, glad that you are fine. I think you did the right thing by reporting this to the police.

It is always wise to be a little careful when outside. You never know when there will be some idiot who had one too many drinks / or some kid just being an jerk out there.

Stay safe.