Rudy To The Rescue

Former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has been hired to help rid this metropolis of its infamously high rates of kidnappings, robberies and murders.

Giuliani, credited for reducing crime rates in New York by 65 percent, will work as a paid consultant to Mexico City officials for one year. It will be the first international security project for the former mayor's consultancy group.

Mexico City has long been plagued by crime. Cab drivers have been known to kidnap passengers, holding them for several days and driving them to automatic teller machines until their bank accounts are empty.

Last month, Laura Zapata and Ernestina Sodi, sisters of Mexican actress and Latin Grammy performer Thalia, disappeared from their car after leaving a play in which Zapata had a starring role. A friend of the family said kidnappers have requested a ransom of $1 million.

Thalia and her husband, Sony Music Chairman Tommy Mottola, were reportedly in the Mexican capital after Sodi and Zapata disappeared, but the family has declined to report the kidnapping to police.

An estimated two-thirds of all offenses in Mexico City go unreported because many people believe that officials are involved in crime - or that the justice system is too corrupt and inefficient to do anything about it.

Few reliable statistics on crime in the city exist, but a poll last month found that many Mexicans feel it is on the rise.

President Vicente Fox has made battling criminal activity a priority, and he has pressured Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to crack down on crime.

The two agreed in February to name as police chief Marcelo Ebrard, a former congressman who specialized in investigating corruption cases.

Ebrard will work with Giuliani and more than 15 people on the former mayor's team, including former police commissioner Bernard Kerik and former fire commissioner Thomas Von Essen.

Giuliani is expected to begin work with Ebrard as early as next week. He will evaluate Mexico City's police force and make recommendations for improvements. Officials did not say Thursday how much the city was paying for Giuliani's services.

When asked about fears that Mexico City officials are turning over administration of the capital to U.S. authorities, Ebrard said Giuliani and his team will only make recommendations. Mexico City officials are under no obligation to follow them.

"We aren't going to be importing police," Ebrard said. "We are interested in the organization, the system" of fighting crime.

By Traci Carl