2023-12-25 20:18:43
The leader of the most important paramilitary organization in his State Rio de Janeirowho was wanted for various crimes, surrendered to police on Sunday, local authorities said.
The “enemy number 1”, as the authorities of the State characterized him, o Luis Antonio da Silva Braga or “Zinio”, had been on the run since 2018. At least 12 arrest warrants had been issued against him for criminal activity. He turned himself in to the federal police in Rio on Sunday night, was arrested and remanded in custody.
The Minister of Justice and Security Flavio Dino expressed his satisfaction, in a post on the X platform, for “another important result of the serious work being done in Rio de Janeiro and other States, to fight against criminal organizations”.
The paramilitary groups that operate in Brazil were formed about 40 years ago by ex-policemen, ex-servicemen, firefighters or even prison guards, as “self-defense” organizations against drug-trafficking gangs.
Although at first the residents looked favorably on them, extortion, arms trafficking and money laundering soon began. In recent years they have also been linked to drug trafficking.
At the end of October, scenes of chaos unfolded in the slums of Rio de Janeiro, with buses set on fire and a thick cloud of smoke covering the area, showing just how dangerous these paramilitary groups have become to the city and national security.
The president Luis Inacio Lula da Silva announced in early November that 3,700 troops would be deployed to ports and airports to tackle this “very serious” violence linked to organized crime.
Reuters
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