On Monday, Rio de Janeiro Governor Cláudio Castro dismissed the Secretary of the Civil Police, Delegate Marcus Amim, and appointed in his place Delegate Felipe Curi, current director of the General Department of Homicide and Personal Protection (DGHPP).
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Others Dismissed
In addition to Amim, Castro also dismissed the general commander of the Fire Department, Colonel Leandro Monteiro, and appointed Colonel Tarciso Antônio de Salles Junior, current general inspector of the Health Department, to take over the Civil Defense and general command of the Fire Department.
New Chief of the Civil Police
Detective Felipe Curi, the current head of the post, has a long career as a police officer in the Rio Civil Police. He has been the Director General of the General Department of Homicide and Personal Protection since October 2023. He has twice commanded the General Department of Specialized Police, was operational undersecretary of the Undersecretariat of Planning and Operational Integration (SSPIO), and occupied the Narcotics Repression (DRE) and Robbery and Theft (DRE) police stations.
Governor’s Justification
According to sources in the Palace, Castro decided to fire the then Secretary of Security due to his dissatisfaction with Marcus Amim’s absence from the security meetings held on Mondays with the security department and secretaries. In addition to a huge increase in violence.
Change in Thinking
However, not long ago, Castro himself was celebrating the public security figures. In an interview, the governor said that they were the best in the last 10 years and attributed the climate of insecurity to narratives and the bad mood of the press.
Situation in Rio de Janeiro
The dismissals occur amid a wave of confrontations in the city and operations to combat crime. This is the 4th change in the leadership of the security department in four years. Before Amim, José Renato Torres, Fernando Albuquerque, and Allan Turnowski had held the position.
Worsening Figures
Amim was dismissed during the election period and after reports of an increase in violence in the state. Data from the Public Safety Institute (ISP) show that there was an increase in strategic indicators from January to July, compared to last year. Rates such as street robberies and vehicle thefts increased 22% and 93%, respectively.
Unrest also arose after Amim’s testimony to the Federal Police about the death of Councilwoman Marielle Franco (PSOL) last month. He said he had sought out police chief Giniton Lages in April 2018 to report that then-PM Ronnie Lessa was one of the people capable of committing that type of attack, but the information was not investigated.
Analysis:
The recent dismissal of the Civil Police Secretary, Marcus Amim, and the appointment of Felipe Curi as his successor expose a worrying pattern in the management of public security in Rio de Janeiro: the constant turnover in the leadership of the Civil Police. Felipe Curi is the fifth secretary appointed by Governor Cláudio Castro, which reflects not a search for structural solutions, but rather internal disputes and political discontent. The change of secretaries in such a short space of time compromises the institution’s ability to implement long-term policies necessary to face the complex security challenges of the state.
In addition to dealing with the security crisis, Curi will have to face serious structural problems within the Civil Police, such as the precariousness of police stations, the lack of personnel, and the general discouragement of police officers. Currently, the force has around 8,500 police officers, a number that should be doubled to adequately meet the demands of the city, as warned by the Civil Police Union (Sindpol-RJ). The solution to these challenges requires long-term structural and political reforms, which are made impossible by the constant change of leadership and the lack of administrative continuity.
