Since the restriction on operations in favelas, decided in 2020 by the Federal Supreme Court (STF), there has been an expansion of the dominance of drug trafficking in Rio de Janeiro. This is what is stated in a report made by the National Council of Justice (CNJ) based on data sent by the Civil Police.
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According to the corporation, mainly Comando Vermelho (CV) – the largest criminal faction in the state – expanded its territorial after the STF decision at the beginning of the Covid pandemic.
ADPF of Favelas
The ADPF of Favelas determined that the police must justify the exceptional nature of carrying out a police operation in a favela. In May 2021, Minister Edson Fachin, who is the rapporteur of the action, proposed 11 measures to combat police lethality in the state – the minister did not prohibit operations.
Effects in Rio de Janeiro
According to data from the Military and Civil Police, the CNJ concluded that what is currently being observed in Rio de Janeiro is a ‘robbery’ effect, with the expansion of a criminal group depending on the seizure of territories from other groups.
According to the Undersecretary of Intelligence (Ssinte) of the Civil Police, around 1,700 locations in the state are under the control of drug trafficking or militia.
Problems in Forensic
The document also highlights that there are serious structural problems in criminal investigations carried out in RJ, which may contribute to the failure to elucidate crimes in the state.
The CNJ suggested that the hierarchical structure of RJ’s technical-scientific police has independence and institutional autonomy. In other words, leave the Civil Police structure.
According to the report, the Civil Police stated that, in the state capital, only 8 criminal experts are dedicated to the forensics sector.
Analysis:
Drug trafficking dominance in Rio de Janeiro has expanded following the restriction on police operations in favelas, as mandated by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) in 2020. This restriction, aimed at reducing police violence and protecting residents of these areas, inadvertently allowed criminal factions, particularly the Comando Vermelho (CV), to expand their territorial control. This expansion is characterized as a ‘robbery’ effect, wherein criminal groups seize territories from rival factions, leading to increased violence and instability. As a result of that, in 2023, while Brazil had a 4% reduction in the number of violent deaths, Rio de Janeiro state moved in the opposite direction, showing a 7.1% increase. The balance between maintaining public safety and safeguarding human rights remains a challenge in Rio de Janeiro’s security landscape.