A mega police operation in several favelas in Rio de Janeiro left at least seven dead on Tuesday in clashes with alleged criminals, authorities reported.
The operation, launched at dawn, was taking place
simultaneously in several favelas in the north of Rio,
including the immense Complexo da Maré, do Alemão and da Penha.
"Seven criminals died in clashes with our teams. Five rifles, three pistols, seven radios (...) and narcotics were seized and will be accounted for. In addition, three suspects were injured and two arrested," reported the Military Police of the state of Rio. on the social network X, which added that two police officers were injured.
The joint action by agents of the civil and military police of Rio sought to capture
members of the Red Command, one of the largest criminal organizations in Brazil,
dedicated to drug trafficking.
"Civil police (...) carry out a mega operation this Tuesday against traffickers of the Red Command (CV) who operate in the Complexo da Maré," the Rio Civil Police said in a statement.
"After intelligence and monitoring reports, the agents discovered a movement of criminals in the region who, in addition to drug trafficking, are being investigated for vehicle theft," he added.
The Military Police of Rio de Janeiro closed streets this Tuesday around several favelas, in an operation against drug trafficking gangs.
Photo: AFP
Numerous police vans and heavily armed officers blocked the entrances to the Alemão Complex.
Photos published by Rio's military police showed excavators removing
metal barriers placed by criminals
at different entrances to the Complexo do Alemão.
Barricades and closed schools
Other images circulating on social media showed barricades with tires and furniture, some on fire.
The mega-operation forced the suspension of classes in dozens of educational centers that affected 20,500 students, Rio councilor Thais Ferreira said in X.
At the end of September, the government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced that it would allocate 900 million reais (about 180 million dollars) over the next three years for
a national plan to combat criminal organizations,
in coordination with state authorities. .
Police operations against organized crime are frequent in Rio's neighborhoods, where police often engage in gunfights with traffickers and the population suffers in the crossfire.
This Tuesday's operation in the Alemán favela, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Photo: AFP
Specialists and human rights organizations criticize this type of approach, alleging that it has low effectiveness against criminal gangs.
In August 2023, anti-drug raids in several favelas in Rio, San Pabo and Bahia left 44 dead in less than a week.
"The extensive operation seeks to repress organized crime and capture the leaders and members of the criminal faction that promotes most of the armed attacks and attempts at territorial expansion in the north and west of Rio," as well as in the metropolitan region and the interior of the state, the Military Police explained this Tuesday.
The Red Command was born in Rio de Janeiro and is one of the largest criminal factions in Brazil, dedicated mainly to drug and weapons trafficking and with operations in other states of the country.
This gang competes in Brazil and
some surrounding countries, such as Paraguay
, for control of drug trafficking routes with the First Capital Command (PCC), the largest Brazilian faction that emerged in São Paulo in the 90s.
In the specific case of Rio de Janeiro, 'Comando Vermelho' has also come into conflict with the so-called 'militias' (paramilitary groups) that have expanded their control over some neighborhoods of the city.
The governor of Rio, Cláudio Castro, a defender of a tough strategy against crime, marked as one of the objectives of his mandate to behead the large factions in the region, which includes the arrest of Wilton Carlos Rabello Quintanilha, alias ' Abelha', one of the leaders of 'Comando Vermelho'.
Source: AFP and EFE
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