Flasher In Mazarife

[Brad Chatellier]

Hola,

I have just arrived in Santiago and heard from several female pilgrims that they each had a man expose himself to them as they left Mazarife in the morning. One woman saw him in the doorway of a house, the other two saw him in a car or a van (not sure which). Presumably this is the same guy.

These women were all walking alone, so he presumably targets solo female pilgrims. He made no advance, but the women I spoke with said it was somewhat frightening.

My recomendation would be to point and bust up laughing, but blowing a whistle might be a better idea. Unfortunately none of the women reported this to the police, but I hope he can be apprehended because the walk through Mazarife is much nicer (so I hear) than the traditional Camino walk along the road. I would hate to see the town's pilgrim count drop because of this SOB.

¡Buen Camino, Peregrinos!

 

[Deborah]

Best response

Best response I ever saw to a flasher:

My girlfriend and I wwere walking through the parking lot of a grocery store with her 4 year old daughter. Some weirdo pulls up next to us and exposes herself.

Without a thought, my girlfriend pointed at his crotch and laughed and screamed, "Oh LOOK Meggie! Like a penis, only SMALLER!"

Hahaha! The guy slammed his door and rushed off....

 

[3rkp]

I saw this guy in the doorway of his house on my way out of Mazarife in the morning. He was standing naked in his doorway, stroking a giant fake penis and calling out "buen camino."

 

[peregrina2000]

I've had four or five flasher incidents (always while walking with another woman), and people impressed on me many times that reporting is very important. I know these guys aren't likely to pose a physical threat, but it's creepy. My first experience was on the way down from the Alto del Perdon and I got a couple of huge blisters as a result of moving as quickly as possible over those kms of rocks. The authorities take it very seriously, it's not good Camino publicity. If someone can identify the house in Mazarife where this guy lives, you can be sure they will act on the information. Can you contact the albergue where you stayed and describe where the house is?

My most recent flashing event occurred in an undeveloped area near the TV station on the way into Monte de Gozo. There was a fancy Audi parked right nearby and we wrote down the license plate number. In Santiago we took it to a police station and they said they would be making a trip to the guy's house. Don't know if they did, but I remember another time we were flashed on the way into Los Arcos by a guy driving in a car and the next day cops were out looking for him after we reported it in Los Arcos. So I think it's always worth reporting. Hard to imagine someone so brazen that he'd stand in his own doorway!

 

[Trudy]

I also saw a flasher on the way up to Monte de Gozo in 2007, where the road crosses a small creek, he was standing just below the road level. It was rainy, cold, and everyone was rugged up, so I don't know how he could tell female from male pilgrims. It wasn't a frightening incident, he was too far away, and these men are generally harmless, but I wondered why he would risk hyperthermia, or perhaps frostbite on certain parts of his anatomy!

 

[Deleted member 3000]

I think pilgrims should feel safe, so I hope I don't promote fear, but I don't think flashers should be written off as generally harmless. From an internet article on flashers:

"Professor Greenberg's research shows that a flasher is a cunning and dangerous sexual predator rather than a pathetic fool in an overcoat, as commonly thought. The professor's Canadian research found that by the age of 18, a third of women had been confronted by a flasher."

Treat indecent exposure as a law enforcement matter (not including occasional flesh in albergues!), just as you would theft and robbery, and take refuge in numbers when necessary to be safe.