Brazil Dismantles Cocaine Network Specialized in Shipping to Europe

RIO DE JANEIROZ, BRAZIL – Eight people were arrested yesterday by the Brazilian Federal Police, in an operation conducted in several regions of the country to dismantle a criminal network specialized in shipping cocaine to Europe.

During the operation, properties valued at some R$147 (US$25.8) million were identified and luxury vehicles were seized worth an estimated R$40 million.

The operation involved over 150 Federal Police agents who executed arrest and search warrants on some thirty properties located in 15 municipalities in the states of São Paulo, Paraná, and Santa Catarina.

The courts also ordered the blocking of three companies and the bank accounts of 68 individuals and companies linked to the investigations, with “suspicious transactions” of approximately R$1 billion (150 million euros) between 2018 and 2020.

Investigations began in 2019, when a system for the creation of companies that marketed organic products was detected, which served as a front for shipping the concealed narcotic.

“They created companies exporting from Brazil and importing from Europe to smuggle drugs in a seemingly legal way. They created several companies to escape the authorities’ radar,” police officers stated during a press conference.

In March this year, Brazilian customs agents seized 240 kilos of cocaine in a paper shipment bound for Europe and on Wednesday another 300 kilos of the narcotic were found in a wood shipment bound for the European continent.

In addition to the front companies created to ship cocaine, the network laundered money at two gas stations and an inn, which have been investigated by the authorities.