02/01/2023 – A retired police officer died on Avenida Rio Branco, in downtown Rio de Janeiro, after being shot. The criminals fled. Police still don’t know if the man was the victim of robbery or execution. According to the first information, he was responsible for the security in one of the floors of a commercial building in the region.
02/01/2023 – Criminals made a mass robbery and vandalized stores and businesses in the Jardim América neighborhood, North Zone. One of the men was armed. Images show many people running and Military Police vehicles. In the action, some windows were destroyed. According to the Military Police, drug dealers from Favela Furquim Mendes ordered the attack after the death of a drug dealer.
03/01/2022 – A bus passenger was killed by a stray bullet during a clash on Avenida Brasil, near Complexo da Maré, North Zone. He was hit by a rifle shot when he was returning home from work. A criminal was also shot and died. The Military Police reported that teams from the Shock Police Battalion were patrolling the expressway when they came across criminals. According to the corporation, one of them reacted and the confrontation was initiated.
04/02/2023 – A man was shot dead on Rua Siqueira Campos, in Copacabana, South Zone. According to preliminary information, a man and a store employee would have been involved in a fight, and one of them would have fired the shots. A third man, aged 44, who was walking along the sidewalk, ended up being shot. According to residents, after the crime, the author would have fled the scene.
04/02/2022 – Actress Jeniffer Dias was kidnapped when returning from a rehearsal at the Mangueira Samba School. She said that she was surprised by hooded and armed men when she arrived home and that she was almost two hours in the hands of criminals. They surrendered her, took her car and put her in another car they were in. After two hours, they released her without any belongings and took all her passwords.
08/02/2023 – A fake doctor was arrested by a team from the Police Station for the Repression of Narcotics (DRE) during a service in Tijuca, in the North Zone. The 38-year-old man worked in Rio de Janeiro with his medical record, the CRM, canceled due to fraud. He was charged with illegally practicing medicine. According to investigations by the Civil Police, he is part of a scheme that tried to defraud records in the regional council of Rio de Janeiro for supposed students of the Faculty of Medicine of the Federal University of Bahia.
11/02/2022 – The Federal Police arrested a 28-year-old man who was transporting approximately 10 kg of cocaine at Galeão International Airport, in the neighborhood of Ilha do Governador, North Zone. The man, from Amapá, intended to board a commercial flight with a stopover in Lisbon, Portugal, but with final destination in Maputo, Mozambique. The drug was hidden inside packages of cosmetics and moisturizers, which would be dispatched with the passenger’s luggage.
14/02/2023 – An elderly woman was the victim of the crime “saidinha de banco” (leaving the bank) inside the building where she works in Copacabana, South Zone. The criminal chased her from the bank into the building and announced the robbery before she entered the elevator. R$ 4,500 were stolen. Security cameras in the building caught the man’s action. In the images, you can see the moment he enters through the gate with the woman, who does not notice the action.
15/02/2023 – Police officers closed down a clandestine real estate sales center in downtown Rio. The center, called Truly Offices, operated in a building on Rua São José. Forty people who worked at the site were taken to the police station. According to the delegate, criminals impersonated brokers and deceived both owners – who wanted to sell their properties – and customers. When customers paid the first installments, the office moved and the employees disappeared.
22/02/2023 – A criminal was arrested after taking a family hostage on Rua Marangá, in Praça Seca, West Zone, to try to escape from the Military Police. Police were called after the suspect threatened residents. The man was arrested, and the family was released unharmed. With him, a gun, a charger, a homemade explosive device, ammunition, and a radio communicator were seized.
23/02/2023 – Rio Civil Police arrested a man who pretended to be a masseuse to sexually harass digital influencers. He approached the victims through social networks and proposed a partnership: in exchange for his services, they would have to post pictures of him to promote his profile. Before starting services, he asked the victims to stay in a bikini or even naked. As soon as the massage was started, the abuse also began: the criminal would rub his hands on the women’s private parts and rub his penis on their buttocks. The criminal was arrested in Barra da Tijuca, West Zone, for sexually abusing at least seven women.
TRENDS & ADVICE
- During summer months, mass robberies and thefts in touristic spots become the most prevalent security risks in Rio de Janeiro, specially in the city’s South Zone.
- Crowded beaches and its vicinities should be avoided.
- Avoid any display of wealth (jewelry, cell phones), but always carry a small amount of money (R$50) to hand over to muggers.
- In case of robbery: cooperate, do not try to run after the assailant as he or she might not be alone or turn violent.
- In the case of being in the immediate vicinity of a shootout:
- Lay on the ground and seek cover.
- When it is safe to do so, find the nearest building, stay away from windows, do not move unless you are sure that the gunfire has ended.
- Avoid walking alone in poorly lit areas or beaches after nightfall. Avoid walking through tunnels.
- Avoid the vicinity of crime-prone areas such as ‘communities’ (so-called ‘favelas’) and lower-income neighborhoods.
- Be always cautious, even in the areas considered safe such as Downtown, Botafogo, Copacabana and Ipanema. Exercise caution in the Centro during the day and avoid the area after nightfall and on Sundays.
- Be careful when using the GPS as they may lead you to unsafe areas controlled by organized crime. Prefere Cooperative taxis instead of driving yourself.
