Considered a nightlife hotspot in Rio, Botafogo, located in the city’s South Zone, is home to numerous bars, schools, and shops. However, the neighborhood has been grappling with insecurity. Drug users, particularly crack addicts, roam the streets, alarming residents and consuming the substance openly on sidewalks.
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Tension on the Streets
Residents report that some streets have become extremely dangerous, with drug users acting erratically and threatening passersby. This growing fear and insecurity have also affected those who work in the neighborhood. A 52-year-old fruit vendor says that many people seek refuge near his stall to escape violent actions by users, who sometimes throw stones and pieces of wood.
Group Behavior
Drug users often operate in groups. According to residents, they ask for money or anything that can be exchanged for drugs. When denied, they frequently resort to threats, claiming they will kill the person or, in some cases, even stating that they have recorded their face and will track them down later.
Real Grandeza Street
One such group frequently gathers on the sidewalk of a building on Rua Real Grandeza, near the São João Batista Cemetery, to use crack. On some days, their numbers can reach around 30 users. Meanwhile, on Voluntários da Pátria Street—one of the busiest streets in the neighborhood—drug users openly walk around with crack pipes in hand, searching for a spot to consume the substance, even in broad daylight.
Corumbá Square
In Corumbá Square, on the way up to the Dona Marta Hill, graffiti could be linked to this insecurity. A wall is marked with the initials CV, representing the Red Command faction, alongside a message: “No crack smoking here.” According to the police, users purchase the drug in the favela. Since crack is inexpensive, it is often exchanged for copper wires stolen from power and internet networks, or other stolen goods.
Sense of Danger
The scattered presence of drug users throughout the neighborhood heightens the sense of danger and complicates the efforts of health and security authorities. While large crowds do occasionally form, they tend to be temporary and mobile, avoiding staying in one place for too long. According to Regina Chiaradia, president of the Botafogo Residents Association (AmaBotafogo), the number of crack users on the streets has not necessarily increased, but the methods used to disperse them have worsened.
Crime Rates
Although there is no direct correlation between crime rates and the presence of crack users, Botafogo’s crime statistics have worsened. When comparing the period from January to December 2023 with the same period in 2024, numbers from the Public Security Institute (ISP) reveal a significant rise in incidents. Cell phone robberies doubled from 245 to 490 cases, while robberies targeting pedestrians increased by almost 70%, rising from 446 to 755 cases.
Analysis:
The situation described in Botafogo reflects a common structural problem in large Brazilian urban centers: the intersection between public insecurity, drug use, and the degradation of urban spaces. The presence of crack users on the streets of the neighborhood and its impact on the daily lives of residents and businesses illustrates how the lack of effective policies for treating drug addiction and providing social support contributes to the intensification of the perception of insecurity. Although the presence of these groups is not necessarily linked to a direct increase in crime, the feeling of fear generated by their erratic behavior and visible drug use has profound effects on the daily lives of the population.
It also reveals a failure in the approach taken by both the government and the security forces, which often focus on dispersing users without addressing the causes of the problem, resulting in cyclical displacements of these groups without effectively reducing the phenomenon. Furthermore, the relationship between drug users and criminal gangs, as indicated by the presence of Red Command messages, reveals how drug trafficking not only fuels addiction but also regulates the behavior of these groups in the territory.