S.I.V.A. IN THE REAL WORLD

For those who don’t remember, I wrote about almost all criminals attacking according to S.I.V.A. That’s the acronym that stands for SELECTION, ISOLATION, VERBAL, then ATTACK/ASSAULT. If you prefer, you can call it the criminal attack plan.

The Process

First, he selected his victim by looking out for women in cars as they headed home from nightclubs.
Secondly, the victims were isolated when they left the club and drove on their own or without a male in the car.
Third, he used the ploy of running into their cars the same way another criminal will use a verbal ruse to get close enough to launch his attack.
Then he attacked.
As I’ve mentioned previously, you can avoid the attack step if you are diligent enough with the first three.

Counter Measures

Could you, for example, reduce the risk of being selected? Yep. Have a male in the car with you, or have a pile of friends in the car. Alternatively, have NRA gun stickers on your vehicle, or don’t go clubbing until he’s been caught. (If you have trouble finding a guy, there used to be a company that sold a male mannequin for lone women drivers that you could put in the front passenger seat to create the impression there was a man on board).

Next…could you increase your awareness levels when you’re on your own? You have to be hyper-vigilant any time you leave the safety of numbers if you want to thwart the criminal attack plan. Alternatively, by being aware of the bump and rob tactic and preparing for what steps to take.
As for the steps to take during the verbal phase (in this case, the fake accident) see the previous blog entry.
If you do those three well enough, you should never end up in the final phase.  Having to fight your way out of a planned ambush by the bad guy(s) is never any fun, and you’re starting a couple of moves behind. Never forget that avoidance and awareness are what true self-protection is all about.