The police stations located in Pinheiros and Perdizes, wealthy neighborhoods in the west zone of São Paulo, registered a record in theft and theft, respectively, in the first five months of 2023. In addition to the two regions, police districts covering areas such as Itaim Bibi, Vila Olímpia, Moema, Campo Belo and Jardins also saw their records of crimes increase in 2023. A police chief said that there is a lack of police to investigate members of gangs specializing in attacking pedestrians and drivers, which results in more criminals on the streets. For him, there will only be an improvement in the scenario with the increase in the number of employees in the Civil Police, responsible for investigating crimes.
- Data from the SSP (Secretary of Public Security) indicate an explosion in cases of robberies carried out in the 14th DP (Pinheiros). From January to May, 1,426 incidents involving the use of weapons or violence were recorded. It is the largest amount ever seen in the district since 2002, when the historic series began. Compared to last year there was a 4% increase in registrations. In Pinheiros, the number of thefts in the first five months of this year rose 52% in comparison with the same period of 2022.
- Perdizes is another region with high crime rates. The neighborhood was responsible for registering 3,847 cases of theft this year, the highest number in two decades or 11% more than in 2022. On the other hand, the local police station recorded a 7% drop in the number of robberies.
- The 15th DP (Itaim Bibi) had 885 cases of robberies in the first five months, a quantity inferior only to the years 2004 (966 records), 2003 (981) and 2002 (961). With regard to thefts, the civil police officers working in the district recorded 2,438 cases, a number 65% higher than that seen in a similar period from 2022. Like the West Zone, noble areas in the South Zone have also seen statistics increase.
- The 27th DP (Campo Belo), which is responsible for Moema neighborhood, had a 7% increase in robberies in the comparison between 2023 and 2022. In the case of thefts, the increase was 10% from one period to the next.
- The 96th DP, which also protects the neighborhood of Brooklin, the number of robberies went from 732 cases to 900 (23%) incidents in one year.
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In 2022, a total of 999,223 crimes targeting cell phones were reported in Brazil. The number is the result of 508,335 robberies, and 490,888 thefts. The state that led the ranking, in absolute numbers, was São Paulo, where a total of more than 300,000 cell phones were stolen by robbers or thieves, which represents 30% of the country’s total. In second place, Bahia had 83,433 occurrences of both types, around 8%. Compared with the number of people who live in each location, the regions with the highest rate of robbery and theft of cell phones per 100,000 inhabitants are Amazonas, with 1,015.1, and the Federal District with 1,008.3. The places that had the biggest increase compared to 2021 were Bahia, with a variation of 70.5%, and Rio de Janeiro, which increased by 58.6%. Former national secretary of public security José Vicente believes that these numbers should grow even more.
Our Analysis:
Numbers are expected to continue to grow strongly. Many factors drive this trend. Cel phones have a high value on the market, they are easy to be taken from people, especially due to people’s careless behavior on the streets. Even when they are not unlocked by the criminals, the devices are valuable, because it is possible to sell their parts. In addition, the phones are in high demand, thus it is easy to sell parts of the phone. Furthermore, the black market is not badly regarded by the population. Finally, with the financial applications on the phones, they are also targeted for the information they store.
The number of rapes in the state of São Paulo increased by 15.3% in the first half of 2023 compared to the same period last year – from 6,150 to 7,089 occurrences. In relation to intentional homicides, the state registered a decrease of 4.9%. In 2022, from January to June, there were 1,395 intentional homicides, against 1,327 this year. It is the smallest number in the first semester in 23 years, when the historical series began.
See other facts:
- Comparing only the second quarter of this year and last year, there was an increase in the records of intentional homicides in the capital: between April and June 2023, there were 129 intentional homicides; in the same period in 2022 there were 112 cases (+15.2%)
- Robberies in the state dropped 8.2% in the semester comparison: from 85 to 78, the lowest number since 2001;
- Vehicle thefts increased by 4.6% (from 45,136 to 47,196)
- And thefts in general rose 2.9% in the state (from 278,634 to 286,673)
21/07/2023 – On Friday (21/07), YouTuber Christian Figueiredo was robbed when leaving his car with his bodyguard, in São Paulo. The criminal was armed and arrived without being noticed, surrendered the bodyguard stole the youtuber’s belongings and escaped. The location of the incident was not revealed.
23/07/2023 – On Sunday morning (23/07), a 63-year-old man was injured after being stabbed during an argument inside the Alto do Ipiranga subway station, in the South Zone of São Paulo. This is the fifth case of violence recorded on the tracks in 2023 alone, according to a survey by TV Globo.
23/07/2023 – On Sunday (23/07) night, a gang carried out two kidnappings in a matter of hours in the West Zone of São Paulo. The crimes took place in the Arpoador neighborhood, around 20h. First, the armed group surrendered an app driver who was finishing a race when the alleged passenger announced the robbery. The worker was forced to make bank transfers and, after suffering aggression for two hours, he was placed in the trunk of his own car. He had a loss of R$ 1 thousand. Next, the group approached a family on the Raposo Tavares Highway. The robbers used the app driver’s vehicle to close another car, in which a family was riding, and attacked it. The family had cell phones and cards stolen, in addition to being forced to make bank transfers — with a loss of around R$ 20,000. The only reason they were not taken into captivity was that the bandits were spotted by a Military Police vehicle, which was already behind the group. Police officers approached the criminals and three of them managed to escape. The only bandit who remained at the scene made the 8-year-old child a human shield before turning himself in.
25/07/2023 – On Tuesday (25/07), digital influencer Vitória Guarizo Demito, and model Gabriel Meneses were arrested on suspicion of torture and theft of more than R$40,000 from a man after a meeting arranged through an app on her apartment in Moema, South Zone of São Paulo. The police found portions of marijuana, hashish, cocaine and dozens of psychotropic drugs that authorities suspect were used to also dope the victim. Investigators point out that the suspects kept these substances in the house with the purpose of using them in the practice of robbery, in the date-rape-drug “style”, which is when the victim is drugged, robbed, and often raped.
26/07/2023 – On Wednesday night (26/07), a 25-year-old fake taxi driver was arrested in Pinheiros, West Zone of São Paulo, after scamming passengers. According to the Military Police, false license plates were found with him, more than 60 credit and debit cards, in addition to two card machines. Still according to police, the man was found in a car who confessed to impersonating a taxi driver. When making the charge, he changed the value in the card machine. Thus, instead of the total of the race, the scammer put a value up to three times greater.
27/07/2023 – On Thursday (27/07), the Civil Police seized 49 luxury vehicles that were in two agencies in the east zone of the city of São Paulo. According to agents, the cars were used by organized crime to launder money. Among the seized vehicles is a McLaren 570s super sports car — brand new, the vehicle costs around R$ 2.4 million. Police also said they had seized an amount of cash, the specific vlue was not disclosed. Authorities suspect that the criminal faction First Capital Command (PCC) used strawmen to acquire cars, since some of them are in the names of people with low purchasing power. Among the luxury cars there was a Ferrari California. According to the Fipe Table (Foundation Institute of Economic Research), a 2017 model costs R$ 2.4 million. It also had Audis, BMWs, Porsches, and Land Rovers. The seized cars have values that range from R$ 300,000 to almost R$ 2.5 million each.
