01/01/2023 – A 13-year-old girl was hit by a stray bullet in Humaitá, South Zone, on New Year’s Eve. The girl was in her grandmother’s apartment, on Rua Capistrano de Abreu, when she was wounded in the back. The suspicion is that the shot came from Morro Santa Marta, in Botafogo, which is close to the region. A projectile was found on the floor of the room.
01/01/2022 – Two people died during a shooting between police and criminals in Complexo do São Carlos, in Catumbi, Rio de Janeiro’s Central Zone. According to the Military Police, officers went to the community after being called via 190 to help a person who would be under threat from the criminals. There, they were met with gunfire and fought back. There were no arrests or seizures.
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02/01/2023 – Security cameras caught criminals using a van to load a stolen motorcycle in Bonsucesso, North Zone. The stolen vehicle was parked on Rua Engenheiro Arthur Moura, next to the Linha Amarela. According to the images, around 12:30, the van passed where the motorcycle was parked, and two men disembarked. The criminals put the vehicle inside the van and left the scene. The whole action lasted about 30 seconds.
02/01/2023 – A woman was robbed on Rua dos Inválidos, in Lapa, downtown Rio. The security camera showed the moment when the victim prepares to cross the street with his cell phone in her hand. A man passes by on a motorcycle at high speed and pulls the device. The action lasts seconds.
03/01/2023 – A group of criminals carried out a mass robbery on Avenida Nossa Senhora de Copacabana, South Zone. Videos circulating on social media show the moment the gang robs a woman and knocks her to the ground.
04/01/2023 – A 31-year-old tour guide was killed in downtown Rio on his way back from work. He was approached by two women on a motorcycle and, when reacting to the robbery, ended up stabbed. The Fire Department was called to help the man, but he was found already dead.
06/01/2023 – A surf teacher was arrested for sexually abusing a ten-year-old girl. The child was taking a class at Praia da Barra da Tijuca, West Zone, when she told her parents about the violence she had suffered. A report from the Legal Medical Institute (IML) confirmed the child’s report. The man was arrested at a hotel in the same neighborhood.
09/01/2023 – A group of elderly people robbed a pharmacy on Rua Barão do Bom Retiro, in the Engenho Novo neighborhood, North Zone. According to the pharmacy manager, the trio broke the locks to get in, took all the medicines and put them in a car that was parked outside the pharmacy. Security camera footage shows the men walking through the establishment with the help of a flashlight.
09/01/2023 – A dentist had the wheels of her car stolen by criminals in Vila da Penha, North Zone. She said that she woke up with a call from her father saying that the neighbors warned him that her car had no wheels. The bandits removed the wheels and left the hydraulic jack they used to lift the vehicle.
10/01/2023 – Police officers arrested two criminals who tried to apply the so-called “ghost hand scam” to a pensioner. In this type of scheme, scammers convince the victim to install an application on the cell phone and take control of the device, obtaining personal data that can be used to take out loans and make transfers. According to the police, a member of the gang contacted the pensioner by telephone, claiming that he was a bank employee and wanting to confirm the completion of a bank transfer. Upon hearing that the victim did not authorize the transfer, the criminal said that the bank’s fraud sector would contact her. Shortly afterwards, another member of the gang called, and told her that her phone had a virus. To solve the problem, he claimed that it would be necessary to install an app. The next day, they called her again, claiming that it was not possible to solve the problem, and that the bank would provide a new device through a delivery guy. Before that, however, the victim went to the police station. Police officers went to the victim’s house and arrested the two criminals when they were visiting her dressed as bank employees.
12/01/2023 – The former candidate for state deputy known as Fabio Charuto, was shot and placed inside the trunk of a car, in Curicica, Jacarepaguá, West Zone. According to the Civil Police, the man has not yet been found. Officers were called about a kidnapping on Travessa da Creche. At the scene, witnesses said that the former candidate was taken by armed men who wore balaclavas (ninja-type caps) and were in a car. After shooting him, they put his body in the trunk and fled the scene.
13/01/2023 – Agents from the Niterói, São Gonçalo and Itaboraí Homicide Precinct (DHNSG) arrested Felipe Cerqueira Martins, better known as Felipe Jaqueta, Tijuca, in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone. According to the Civil Police, Felipe is brother-in-law of Márcio dos Santos Nepomuceno, known as Marcinho VP, and would have links to drug trafficking in Rio. According to the investigations, Felipe pretended to be a successful landowner, when, in fact, he was articulating the purchase of ammunition from the USA to communities dominated by drug trafficking.
16/01/2023 – An intense shootout between criminals took place in Gardênia Azul, in Rio de Janeiro’s West Zone, at 19:00. At least two people were harmed. Witnesses also informed that approximately ten criminals robbed two cars to escape the area.
17/01/2023 – The Civil Police conducted an operation in Complexo do Lins, in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone, in the morning. A shootout between criminals and police officers took place and a woman was hit by a stray bullet. 11 criminals were arrested. The action aimed the criminal organization Comando Vermelho, which has a strong presence in the area and use the favela to receive and process stolen vehicles and cargo.
17/01/2023 – A criminal on a motorcycle was arrested with a revolver on Saint Roman St., in Copacabana, in Rio de Janeiro’s South Zone.
18/01/2023 – A criminal stole a vehicle on Ave. Vieira Souto, in Ipanema, at Posto 9 height, in Rio de Janeiro’s South Zone. The driver left the vehicle open on the street to handle goods to a kiosk on the beach, when the thief entered the vehicle and drove away with it. Nevertheless, the victim’s cell phone was kept in the car and the police was able to track its GPS location on Borges de Medeiros Ave., in Lagoa, still de in the South Zone, next to Flamengo’s Football Club. The police shot the vehicle three times. The criminal escaped.
20/01/2023 – A shootout between criminals happened in Gardênia Azul, in Rio de Janeiro’s West Zone, at dawn. When the police arrived, a new confrontation happened. One woman was hit by two stray bullets and hospitalized.
20/01/2023 – Criminals committed a mass robbery on Avenida Brasil, next to Fazenda Botafogo, in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone, at 17:40. The Fire Fighters Inspector Colonel Marcos da Costa Alves was inside a bulletproof vehicle with his family and was targeted by the robbers. The offenders shot at his vehicle as he refused to leave it. Even though the car supported the shots, the man decided to handle the car to avoid any risks. The car had a GPS device, which allowed the police to find it in Complexo do Chapadão, nearby.
22/01/2023 – A collective fight between street vendors, bathers, Municipal Guard, Military Police and Public Order Secretariat agents took place on the sidewalk of Leme beach, in Rio de Janeiro’s South Zone, at night. According to the authorities, agents went to the area to stop the lynching of a man accused of theft by others, but they were attacked by people, who threw glass bottles, and they responded using progressive force. One street vendor was stabbed by another and died.
22/01/2023 – A criminal snatched a golden necklace from a tourist on Avenida Vieira Souto, in Ipanema, in Rio de Janeiro’s South Zone, and ran away. Public agents from the Municipal Guard noticed the crime and pursued the criminal. He tried to hide himself under an ice truck on Farme de Amoedo St., but was caught by the authorities and arrested.
23/01/2023 – The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) seized R$ 135.000 in anabolic steroids and MDMA at the Galeão Airport Post Office, Ilha do Governador, in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone.
24/01/2023 – A shootout between criminals and the Military Police happened in Costa Barros, in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone. Two criminals were shot and arrested and a semiautomatic rifle, pistol, radios and drugs were seized with them.
26/01/2023 – The Federal Police and the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rio de Janeiro launched, in four states, the Operation End of the World, against money laundering originating from the drug trafficking faction Terceiro Comando Puro (TCP). 11 criminals were arrested and R$ 22 million worth of assets were seized in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Santa Catarina and Paraná states. 26/01/2023 – An intense shootout between rival drug trafficking factions took place in Vila Kennedy, in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone. Two men died.
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.
