According to information from the G1 portal, citing sources from the Rio de Janeiro government, 81 people were arrested in the mega-operation against Comando Vermelho (CV) in the Alemão and Penha complexes in North Zone Rio.
During the ongoing operation, two civil police officers and two military police were killed in a confrontation that began this morning, during which members of the criminal organization used high-caliber firearms and even drones equipped with explosives.
Among those killed is one of the faction’s main leaders, and several key figures of the organization have been detained. Three civilians were also reported to be injured.
“This is the reality. We deeply regret the injured, but this is a necessary, planned action with intelligence, and it will continue,” stated the Secretary of Public Security of Rio de Janeiro, Victor Santos, as quoted by G1, noting that 280,000 people live in the areas affected by the operation, which has forced the closure of dozens of schools, health centers, and roads.
So far, authorities have seized 71 rifles, exclusive to the Armed Forces, two handguns, and nine motorcycles. In a statement, the Rio de Janeiro government assured that “all security forces are on alert while the integrated action in the Alemão and Penha complexes is underway.”
“The units are focused on the main routes and areas with high concentrations of people,” they added. In retaliation to the mega-operation, local media reported that criminals set up barricades using several stolen buses and cars in various locations in the North Zone of the capital, including Avenida Brasil, Linha Vermelha, and Cidade de Deus, among other roads.
Operation Containment, aimed at apprehending criminal leaders from Rio de Janeiro and other states and combating the expansion of Comando Vermelho, mobilized around 2,500 agents who faced alleged criminals in an effort to fulfill 100 arrest warrants and 150 search and seizure warrants.
I urge residents of the area to stay home while security forces operate,” appealed Governor Cláudio Castro.
In a press conference, the governor of the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro criticized the lack of support from the Federal Government against criminal organizations. Cláudio Castro described the operation as “the largest ever” conducted against Comando Vermelho and stated that Rio de Janeiro “is alone in this war.”
“This operation today has very little to do with public safety. It is a state defense operation. It is a war that is exceeding limits… that has nothing to do with urban security. We should have greater support, even from the Armed Forces,” emphasized the governor.
Comando Vermelho was founded in 1979 in the prisons of Rio de Janeiro and is now considered one of the most dangerous criminal organizations in the world.
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