2024-02-28 03:01:00
At least seven people died this Tuesday in a police operation carried out in several favelas in Rio de Janeiro against “Comando Vermelho”one of the largest criminal groups in the country, in the midst of an increase in violence between armed organizations for control of the drug market in the region.
The clash with the gangs
Four other alleged criminals, in addition to two police officers, were injured in this action that took place simultaneously in the north and west of the Fluminense capital, according to the Military Police of Rio de Janeiro in a statement. The operation also led to the arrest of five people, two of them minors, and forced some 20,500 students from some 24 public schools to stay home due to the suspension of classes.
“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 in the note, which seized seven assault rifles, three pistols, two vehicles, a motorcycle and an amount of drugs not yet accounted for.
The agents established entry and exit controls in the affected neighborhoods to prevent the escape of suspects during the operation. At one of these checkpoints, in the Penha favela complex, there was a confrontation between a patrol and armed criminals who were moving to another part of the city. According to the official version, the four occupants of the vehicle, which was apparently stolen, were shot by security forces and taken to a hospital, but died shortly after.
In the Flexal favela, three suspects died after being shot in a clash with Brazilian authorities. In addition, there are agents deployed in the favelas of Alemão, Engenho da Rainha, Juramentinho, Ipase, Guaporé, Tinta, Quitungo, as well as in Ciudad de Dios, where the actions of “Comando Vermelho” are also being investigated. In the early morning, intense shootings were reported in these places, as well as barricades with tires and furniture, some on fire, to try to contain the advance of the Rio policereported the local media Metropolises.
“Red Command”
“Comando Vermelho” was born in Rio de Janeiro and It is one of the largest Brazilian criminal factions, dedicated mainly to drug and weapons trafficking and with operations in other states. 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 1990s.
In the specific case of Rio, “Comando Vermelho” also came into conflict with the so-called militias – paramilitary groups – who expanded their control over some neighborhoods of the city. The majority of them are made up of police and former police officers, as well as former agents of other security forces. They dominate large areas that extend across dozens of neighborhoods in Rio de Janeiro, fighting for control of the territory with military weapons, which they usually steal from the authorities’ own arsenals.
The fight against organized crime
Police operations against organized crime are frequent in Rio’s slums, where police often engage in gunfights with traffickers and the population suffers in the crossfire. In August 2023, anti-drug raids in several favelas in Rio, Sao Paulo and Bahia left 44 dead in less than a week..
The governor of Rio,
Cláudio Castro, affiliated with the Liberal Party and defender of a tough strategy against crimeset himself as one of the objectives of his mandate to disintegrate the large factions in the region, which includes the arrest of Wilton Carlos Rabello Quintanilha, alias “Abelha”, one of the leaders of “Comando Vermelho”.
Although the president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva He said that he intends to work with Governor Castro despite belonging to the opposition; last August he criticized the violence carried out by the Rio de Janeiro police. “The police have to know how to differentiate between a criminal and a poor person walking down the street,” said the president. during an event in that city.
Lula highlighted earlier this month that in Brazil organized crime functions as a multinational industry that goes beyond the favelas and a city, by appointing Ricardo Lewandowski as Minister of Justice and Public Security, who last year He retired as a judge of the Supreme Federal Court (STF).
“Organized crime is in all activities, in football, in politics, in the judiciary, in the business class. It is everywhere and jointly with other countries such as the United States, France, Holland or Sweden, with a lot of power. “Organized crime is not something of a favela or a city, it is a multinational industry,” said Lula, who In 2023, he announced that he would allocate some $180 million over the next three years for a national plan to combat criminal organizations.in coordination with state authorities, reported the news agency AFP.