30/04/2023 – A shooting at Complexo do Chapadão, in the Costa Barros neighborhood, North Zone, left an 11-year-old child and a 19-year-old girl dead. In addition to the two fatalities, a 43-year-old woman was injured. According to information from the Military Police, the three were at a party in the location known as Campo do Real, when a man on a motorcycle drove by shooting. Investigators believe the attack was related to a war between rival drug dealers in the region.
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02/05/2023 – The body of a militia member known as Gargalhone was found shot inside a car in front of Mercado do Peixe, in Barra da Tijuca, West Zone. The criminal is a former head of the Gardênia Azul militia, also in the West Zone. He was pointed out both as a member of a militia and a drug faction. According to investigations, his group turned to the Red Command to regain control of Gardênia Azul, in Jacarepaguá. The Homicide Division of the Capital (DHC) is investigating the circumstances of the case.
03/05/2023 – The Civil Police and the Public Ministry of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ) began an operation against the militia headed by the criminals known as Tandera. Agents went out to serve 13 arrest warrants and 25 search and seizure warrants. The gang would be responsible for extortion, homicides, threats, land grabbing, usury, illegal extraction of sand to construction works, money laundering, among other crimes. According to investigations, the group even formed a “coalition” between candidates elected for the office in the 2020 elections.
04/05/2023 – A routine patrol procedure led to a shooting near the Mercadão de Madureira, in the Madureira neighborhood, North Zone. The police tried to approach a group that was trying to steal a vehicle and the shooting began. One person died and six others were injured.
04/05/2023 – A woman was shot dead inside her car on Avenida Pastor Martin Luther King Jr., at the access point to the Linha Amarela, near the neighborhood of Inhaúma, North Zone. The 51-year-old driver died instantly. She was surprised by armed bandits who fired more than 14 times. She owned a jewelry store in Copacabana and despite wearing many pieces at the time of the crime, nothing was taken.
06/05/2023 – A shopkeeper died from a gunshot wound to the head on Rua Comandante Mário Lahmeyer, in the Colégio neighborhood, North Zone, during an attempted robbery. According to witnesses, the 72-year-old victim was attacked by two men while driving. The criminals arrived on a motorcycle and stole the elderly man’s car, but it stopped due to the alarm, which motivated the murder. The criminals fled.
07/05/2023 – Criminals on the run, after the failed attempt to invade the Campinho and Fubá hills, in Cascadura, headed towards the Patolinha favela, in Complexo da Serrinha, in Madureira, also in the North Zone. The bandits took at least five hostages at the scene. Among the hostages were children and a 76-year-old woman. The Military Police were at the scene and negotiated for the criminal’s surrender. The Military Police reported that two criminals were arrested and two rifles, a pistol, two grenades, as well as magazines and ammunition were seized.
08/08/2023 – Two people were kidnapped on Estrada dos Bandeirantes, near Vargem Pequena, West Zone. The body of one of the victims was found nearby. According to police information, the victim owned a snack trailer. She and her aide were taken away by two hooded men. So far, there is no information about the motivation of the crime or the whereabouts of the other victim.
08/05/2023 – The Military Police arrested in Praça Seca, West Zone, a man considered one of the biggest cargo robbers in the Jacarepaguá region. He was found with a load that had been stolen from a truck hours earlier. The 25-year-old criminal had the material on a motorcycle and tried to flee the police when he saw the car. He already has an long criminal record, including 14 accusations of cargo robbery.
09/05/2023 – A young man died after he was shot during a mass robbery on Estrada do Colégio, in the Colégio neighborhood, North Zone. According to witnesses, the 22-year-old victim was hit by two shots while bandits tried to rob bus passengers and pedestrians on the road.
10/05/2023 – Civil police officers from Santa Teresa arrested two businessmen for torturing and robbing an employee. The victim, who works with the arrested duo, told the police that she was tied up, beaten, threatened with being burned and had her hair cut by the bosses. She works at an aesthetics clinic at Santos Dumont Airport, in Glória, downtown Rio. The owner of the establishment would have suspected that the employee would be “stealing her customers”. The police chief responsible for the investigations, said that the employee was at home when her bosses knocked on the door. The three argued and at one point the duo quickly tied the employee and began the torture session.
11/05/2023 – A police task force thwarted an attempt robbery to a Caixa Econômica Federal branch, on Ilha do Governador, North Zone. There was an intense shooting. Seven men were arrested, and two were shot. The attack took place around 4:00 on Rua Capitão Barbosa and the criminals were surprised by the police, who had already been monitoring the gang. There were at least 12 criminals with rifles. They even detonated a bomb but failed to take the money. On the run, the rest of the gang dropped explosives on the agency and stole a car. According to the police, they were from other states and were co-opted by drug dealers from Complexo do Alemão. Three of the arrested were from Bahia, Paraíba and Minas Gerais.
12/05/2023 – Rio de Janeiro Cardinal-Archbishop, Dom Orani Tempesta, was robbed on Avenida Brasil, close to the Barros Filho neighborhood, North Zone. The priest was returning from a mass in Bangu when he was attacked. Armed men surrounded the vehicle where Dom Orani was traveling with his driver and ordered everyone to get out. Cell phones of the archbishop and the driver, episcopal ring, mass clothes, books and watches were taken.
14/05/2023 – A former military police officer was killed with several rifle shots on Rua Spinoza, in the Campo de Grande neighborhood, West Zone. According to security camera footage, at least seven hooded men got out of two cars that stopped in the middle of the street. The armed group approached residents who were talking on the sidewalk and surrounded one of them. A first rifle shot is fired at the man at close range. Other rifle shots are fired at the man who falls to the ground.
14/05/2023 – The Special Office for Tourism Support (Deat) has opened an inquiry to investigate the death of a Chilean tourist and attacks on a second Chilean, who is hospitalized at the Souza Aguiar Municipal Hospital.According to the police, they were in Lapa, on Saturday (13/05) night. Hours later, they were found at the Mirante do Rato Molhado, on Rua Francisca de Andrade, in Santa Teresa. The main line of investigation is that they were drugged in the “Boa Noite, Cinderella” scam (spike drink scam) and then robbed.
17/05/2023 – A gang that used to scam women between the ages of 40 and 80 was arrested. Members were meeting with some victims in an office on Rua General Artigas, in Leblon, South Zone. More than one hundred records of women were seized. Criminals used the name of a well-known company in the fashion world to charge victims money for photo books that could lead them to participate in advertising campaigns. However, after receiving the requested amount, they ended contact with the women. To deceive the victims, they claimed to have famous brands as customers.
18/05/2023 – The Military and Civil Police carried out an operation in Complexo da Maré, North Zone. Teams from the Special Operations Battalion (Bope) and the Coordination of Special Resources (Core) went to the Parque União and Nova Holanda communities. The action, according to the Military Police, aims to arrest criminals involved in cargo and vehicles thefts. Residents reported an intense shooting.
18/05/2023 – A man was shot dead on Avenida Engenheiro Souza Filho, in the Itanhangá neighborhood, in Jacarepaguá, West Zone. The victim was a delivery guy and was hit by the shots while he was still on top of the motorcycle. According to residents, he would have been killed by militiamen.
19/05/2023 – Civil Police carried out an operation in the community of Parada de Lucas, North Zone. As a result of the operation, there was a shooting on Avenida Brasil, close to the neighborhoods of Parada de Lucas and Vigário Geral. The purpose of the action was to prevent drug dealers from the region from invading communities belonging to rival criminal groups. According to an investigation by the Intelligence Sector, during that dawn there was a movement of drug dealers from other locations to reinforce the possible invasion. It would be part of a plan to expand territories, to form the “Israel Complex”, composed of the Cidade Alta, Vigário Geral, Parada de Lucas, Cinco Bocas and Pica-Pau communities.
19/05/2023 – A former military police officer was killed inside the parking lot of a store on Avenida Geremário Dantas, in Freguesia, Jacarepaguá, West Zone. According to the police, he was known as Deco, and was involved in the Rio das Pedras militia. Security camera recordings show two hooded men firing several shots at the victim. Nobody was arrested.
20/05/2023 – A woman died after eating chocolates that she received from an anonymous sender, along with a bouquet of flowers, on her birthday. Civil Police are investigating whether the 54-year-old caregiver was poisoned. According to her family, she had been receiving threats on social networks and, on Saturday, answered a call in which a delivery guy told her that there was a delivery for her. She even told acquaintances that she was afraid to eat the chocolates because they could be poisoned. The victim felt sick on the street, was rescued by military police who were passing by on the street and was taken to the hospital, where she arrived dead.
21/05/2023 – Several people went to the police station in Copacabana, South Zone, to register thefts during a music festival that took place on the beach. Images recorded by a resident of the region showed the confusion and people running in the sand. Two men were arrested by the police. Another man who had an open arrest warrant was also arrested during patrolling that took place before the event. Still during the patrol, the agents found nine knives in the sand.
21/05/2023 – A fitness influencer was killed when accessing the Linha Amarela in Pilares, North Zone. Civil Police are treating the case as an attempted robbery. The family, however, does not believe in robbery and says that the car was followed. She was in the car with her husband when the criminals approached. She was shot in the shoulder and the bullet went through her heart.
23/05/2023 – Two boys on a motorcycle committed several robberies in downtown Rio, when they arrived at Leopoldina they passed by agents who were training an armored vehicle from the Casa da Moeda, who became suspicious of the duo when they saw them going up the construction site, as if they were running away. Realizing they were being chased, the duo shot at the police. Both were hit, one of which died on the spot. The other was taken to the hospital. At least two cars passing by were hit by gunfire.
24/05/2023 – The Federal Police (PF) arrested two people in Operation Novos Rumos, against a cocaine shipping scheme from Rio de Janeiro to Europe. About a ton and a half of the drug was seized during investigations. One of the prisoners is a professional diver. According to investigations, the criminal group, linked to the Red Command, exports the drug in its purest form, clandestinely inserting it into vessels. To gain access to the ships of interest, the group had the support of employees hired from the Port of Rio de Janeiro.
25/05/2023 – Three men who were part of a gang that sells synthetic drugs at parties in Rio and São Paulo, were arrested in Copacabana, South Zone. The group also sells narcotics through messaging apps. The police operation was carried out with the aim of complying with seven search and seizure warrants under investigation by the Rio Civil Police. In one of the criminals’ house, officers found marijuana and the substance butanediol, an input to produce GHB, known as a “rape drug”, used to dope victims. Material for packing, pipes and lighters were also seized. GHB is also used by young people at parties and is extremely addictive. In the house of the other two arrested, a large amount of synthetic drugs was found, such as methamphetamine, as well as anabolic steroids and money.
26/05/2023 – The Military Police reported that teams from the Pacifying Police Coordination (CPP) and the Pacifying Police Unity (UPP) carried out an operation in Morro Dona Marta, in Botafogo, South Zone. Officers worked in the region to arrest criminals and put an end to an irregular music event. A criminal was shot and died. With him, the police seized a submachine gun. Morro Dona Marta is located on Rua São Clemente, one of the busiest streets in the neighborhood.
28/05/2023 – Will Whitney, who is part of the technical team of singer Lana Del Rey’s tour, had his cell phone stolen during the singer’s visit to Rio de Janeiro. In a post on social media, he reported that he was stolen during a personal tour of Rio.
30/05/2023 – A tourist was found dead in a hotel room on Rua do Lavradio, in Lapa, downtown Rio. He was accompanied by another man, who was arrested shortly after leaving the hotel. The 31-year-old tourist and the other man arrived at the hotel together around 2:00. Shortly before 6:00, the man left the place alone. Shortly after, the receptionist became suspicious and went to check the room. That’s when, she found the victim tied to the bed and already dead. Some people recognized the victim’s companion in the vicinity of the hotel, and he was arrested.
31/05/2023 – Civil Police arrested a criminal for robbing jewelry stores in Rio de Janeiro. The fugitive from justice, known as Orelha, was arrested at the Irajá Cemetery, North Zone. Now, the police’s goal is to find other members of the group. According to investigations, the gang rented a property next to the jewelry stores and, at night, made a hole in the wall, deactivated the security system, and took everything.
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.
