In Brazil, Luis Antonio da Silva Braga is now behind bars. The leader of the main paramilitary group in the state of Rio de Janeiro, wanted for various criminal activities, surrendered to the police on Sunday, authorities announced.
Described as “enemy number one” by the government of the state of Rio de Janeiro and known as “Zinho”, he had been on the run since 2018. He was the subject of at least a dozen arrest warrants. arrest, when he presented himself to the federal police in Rio.
Arms trafficking and money laundering
The Minister of Justice and Security, Flavio Dino, celebrated Monday on the X network “another important result of the serious and planned work that is being carried out in Rio de Janeiro and other states in the fight against criminal factions “.
The militias that operated in Brazil were created around forty years ago by former police officers, retired soldiers, firefighters and even prison guards as self-defense groups against the scourge of gangs. drug traffickers. Although they were initially well received by locals, these militias quickly began practicing extortion. They are also involved in arms trafficking and money laundering. In recent years, they have occasionally allied themselves with drug traffickers.
Scenes of chaos at the end of October
Buses burned, a cloud of smoke covering working-class neighborhoods of Rio de Janeiro: the scenes of chaos that occurred at the end of October showed the extent of the militias’ hold on the city, to the point of becoming a security issue national. The postcard city of tourism in Brazil has never experienced such depredation in its public transport.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced at the beginning of November the deployment of 3,700 soldiers in the country’s main ports and airports in the face of a “very serious” situation of violence due to organized crime.