Data from the Public Security Institute (ISP) revealed that two rifles are seized daily in Rio de Janeiro, totaling 6,619 apprehensions from 2007 to 2024, with 732 in the past year alone. This prevalence of assault weapons, used by criminals in territorial disputes and by police in response, began escalating in the 1980s with the rise of the Comando Vermelho and the cocaine trade. Experts highlight the disproportionate firepower these automatic weapons give criminals, creating “unimaginable urban conflicts” for residents, who often face them in robberies and even unintended crossfire, as exemplified by a young man shot in the head in 2022.
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02/07/2025 – On Wednesday (02/07), a bar fight in Méier resulted in a couple being hospitalized. At Bartequim, on Rua Dias da Cruz, a public servant, Marcio da Silva Mello, 59, intervened in an argument involving the bar owner and a minor, leading to him being punched unconscious and kicked. His wife, Rosane Melo, 60, was also knocked down, suffering a fractured finger requiring surgery. The incident stemmed from a complaint about a delayed drink order.
08/07/2025 – On Tuesday (08/07), the Civil Police’s DRE launched “Operation Containment” targeting a violent criminal organization in Rio de Janeiro’s West Zone. The group, known as “Bonde dos Crias” or “Tropa do RD,” is an armed wing of the Comando Vermelho (CV) led by ex-militiaman Rodney Lima de Freitas, “RD.” They exploit communities like Barbante, Catiri, and Vila Kennedy, and the neighborhoods of Campo Grande, Santa Cruz, and Guaratiba. The operation aims to gather evidence, dismantle the group, and curb CV’s territorial expansion, as they are actively warring with paramilitaries and are investigated for homicides.
08/07/2025 – On Tuesday (08/07), retired Civil Police officer Alcino Luiz Costa Pereira was arrested by the Public Ministry (MPRJ) for leading a group that extorted money from illegal establishments. Pereira and five other civil police officers were charged with passive corruption for accepting bribes from brothels, illegal bingos, and junkyards between 2018 and 2022. This arrest is a development of “Operation Fim da Linha,” which previously targeted systemic corruption in specialized police stations and the illegal gambling mafia.
09/07/2025 – On Wednesday (09/07), the Rio de Janeiro Defraudations Police (DDEF), in “Operation False Portability,” arrested seven people for a consignment loan scam. This coordinated action with civil police from Acre, Minas Gerais, and Santa Catarina targeted a scheme that defrauded retirees and pensioners by inducing new loans under false pretenses of better conditions for existing debts. The gang, which moved around R$5 million, had a meticulous operation with defined roles. Six arrests occurred in Rio and one in Santa Catarina, with investigations ongoing.
09/07/2025 – On Wednesday (09/07), three buses were hijacked and used as barricades in Rio’s Complexo da Pedreira, amid intense shootouts reported by residents. While the vehicles were removed, several bus lines were impacted by diverted routes, according to Rio Ônibus. This incident brings the total to 67 buses seized by criminals in 2025. The Military Police (PM) confirmed their agents were attacked during patrol, leading to a confrontation, but reported no injuries or bus circulation interruptions.
10/07/2025 – On Thursday (10/07), the Civil Police’s Drug Enforcement Agency (DRE) launched an operation in Mesquita’s Chatuba community to combat the territorial expansion of the Comando Vermelho (CV). The action, stemming from a seven-month investigation into drug trafficking, extortion, and the presence of armed criminals, aimed to fulfill search and seizure warrants. During the operation, six individuals were arrested, two adolescents apprehended, and drugs were seized. The DRE’s ongoing efforts target the CV’s organized criminal structure and its exploitation of the local population.
10/07/2025 – On Thursday (10/07), “Operation Deep Hunt,” led by Goiás Civil Police with local support, targeted a cybercrime and money laundering organization across Goiás, Rio de Janeiro, and the Federal District. In Rio, around 06:00, a couple was arrested in a luxury penthouse in Barra da Tijuca for qualified theft and criminal association. The investigation revealed the gang acquired banking data on the dark web using cryptocurrencies. The operation involved 180 police officers, fulfilling 94 warrants, including arrests and searches, and seizing R$112 million in assets, 34 properties, and 12 luxury cars. The couple, who had been monitored for a week, was taken to Cidade da Polícia.
11/07/2025 – On Friday (11/07), Civil Police and Procon-RJ launched an operation targeting Equipe Tênis, an e-commerce company, for widespread fraud. Influencer Gabriele Santos Silva and her brother Douglas Santos Silva are under investigation for selling counterfeit, used, or undelivered shoes, defrauding around 100 victims nationwide. Gabriele was arrested for child abuse, as her 10-year-old son was found alone in unsanitary conditions. Authorities seized numerous credit cards, phones, notebooks, and watches. Both siblings face charges, are electronically monitored, and have had their assets and company websites blocked. Victims are urged to contact the Consumer Police Station.
11/07/2025 – On Friday (11/07) morning, three bodies were discovered inside a parked car on Rua Caviana, in Taquara. One victim was identified as Raphael da Silva Nascimento. Authorities are investigating if the black Peugeot was stolen and suspect the bodies were placed there, as the car had no bullet marks.
11/07/2025 – On Friday (11/07), a 21-year-old man with 86 prior police records, was again arrested following a pharmacy robbery in Ipanema on 29 June. Identified as the “biggest thief in Rio’s South Zone,” he was also linked to the June 24 invasion of an evangelical temple where intruders defecated and used Eucharistic table cloths to clean themselves. Maciel, who recently completed a prior sentence for extensive thefts, including a R$100,000 dental clinic robbery, accumulated multiple new charges in just 24 days of freedom before his latest capture.
11/07/2025 – On Friday (11/07), Sergeant Kelvyton de Oliveira Vale, 48, of the 41st BPM (Irajá), died after being shot in the head during an operation in Morro do Trem, Vila Kosmos, Rio’s North Zone. The veteran officer, who had served 24 years and had multiple previous bullet-related injuries, was fatally wounded during a confrontation and died upon arrival at Hospital Getúlio Vargas. The operation aimed to disrupt a criminal gang, recover stolen vehicles, fulfill arrest warrants, and remove barricades.
11/07/2025 – On Friday (11/07) afternoon, a Bope operation in Morro dos Macacos, Rio’s North Zone, led to intense shootouts, with residents reporting gunfire and drivers turning around in the Noel Rosa tunnel for safety. The operation aimed to curb criminal activity and resulted in the death of drug trafficker Pedro Paulo Lucas Adriano do Nascimento, “Titauro,” a former TCP member who migrated to CV and commanded invasions of the community. Police seized a rifle, ammunition, and a bulletproof vest from him. Morro dos Macacos is a strategic location, frequently disputed by CV and TCP factions.
11/07/2025 – On Friday (11/07), Anderson de Castro Dias, a 51-year-old Brazilian Air Force (FAB) warrant officer and nurse, was shot and killed in an attempted robbery on Avenida Brasil, near Coelho Neto. He was reportedly returning from duty to his home in Itaguaí when intercepted by criminals. Dias, who seemingly reacted, was shot inside his car. Military Police later found him at Hospital Albert Schweitzer, where he succumbed to his injuries. The Capital Homicide Police Station (DHC) is investigating the case of the widely respected officer.
12/07/2025 – On Saturday (12/07), Vinicius Drumond, son of late “bicheiro” Luizinho Drumond and member of the “Santíssima Trindade” illegal gambling syndicate, was attacked on Avenida das Américas in Barra da Tijuca. His armored Porsche was shot more than 30 times. The attackers, in a similarly armored Honda HR-V with firing ports, fled, abandoning their vehicle before stealing another car and kidnapping its driver, who was later released. Police are investigating this attempted assassination, the death of Vinicius’s former manager, and his security guard’s murder, linking them to internal power struggles and an ongoing dispute with his former ally, Adilsinho. Drumond is also under investigation for oil theft and connections to a lawyer’s murder.
