DFW.com reports Mexico City cops to change uniforms:
MEXICO CITY - Mexico City police are trading in their bulletproof vests and drab brown uniforms for a slightly more colorful crime-fighting outfit: broad-brimmed sombreros and mariachi suits.That ought to foil the banditos!
Starting Nov. 1, 70 police officers will fight crime in Mexico City's historic center dressed in authentic "charro" outfits, the capital's public safety director, Marcelo Ebrard, said Thursday.
The proposal was put forth by officials in the hotel and tourism industry who believe the costumes are an effective way to draw visitors while still fighting rising crime rates in downtown Mexico City.
If the program is successful, officials plan to increase the number of charro police to 80 officers two months after the program begins, then 120 officers at the beginning of next year.
Charros are Mexico's original cowboys, and their outfits usually include spurs, guns and pointy, broad-brimmed hats known as sombreros.
