MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Police raids leave at least 7 dead in Rio favelas

The operations targeted the infamous Comando Vermelho drug trafficking organization

A large-scale deployment by the Police in various Rio de Janeiro favelas (slums) has left at least seven people dead after gunfights between law enforcement officers and suspected criminals, it was reported. Two servicemen were wounded.

”Seven criminals were killed in clashes with our teams. Five rifles, three pistols, seven radios (...), and narcotics were seized and will be accounted for. In addition, three suspects were wounded and two arrested,“ the Rio State Military Police wrote on X.

”Civil police (...) carried out a mega-operation this Tuesday against traffickers of the Red Command (CV) operating in the Maré Complex,“ Rio's Civil Police said in a statement. ”After intelligence and monitoring, the agents discovered a movement of criminals in the region who, in addition to drug trafficking, are investigated for car theft,” it added.

The joint action sought to capture members of the Comando Vermelho (Red Command), one of Brazil's largest drug trafficking organizations.

Photos published by Rio's military police showed bulldozers removing metal barriers placed by criminals at different accesses to the Complexo do Alemão. Other images circulating on social networks showed barricades with tires and furniture, some on fire. Images recorded by residents showed that Rocinha, in the south zone, was surrounded by police on Monday night before the mega-operation in the other regions forced the suspension of classes in dozens of educational centers, affecting 20,500 students, according to a posting on X from Rio Councilwoman Thais Ferreira.

Last year, the Government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced it would allocate some R$ 900 million (about US$180 million) over the next three years for a national plan to combat criminal organizations, in coordination with state authorities.

Police operations against organized crime are frequent in the slums of Rio, where shootouts with traffickers are commonplace. Human rights organizations claim this type of approach has a low effectiveness against criminal organizations.