Brazilian federal police arrest more than 20 people in operations against international drug trafficking

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazilian federal police arrested more than 20 people Tuesday in two simultaneous operations against international drug trafficking and money laundering in five Brazilian states and two other countries.

The operations, dubbed “Brutium” and “Turfe,” aimed to implement 86 court orders, including 39 arrest warrants. By early afternoon, at least 21 people had been arrested in the country and four in Europe.

The raids took place in the states of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina and Mato Grosso. In addition to Brazil, there were also operations in Paraguay and Spain.

In Paraguay, the National Anti-Narcotics Secretariat (SENAD) conducted two raids, one at a luxury villa in Hernandarias and the other at a commercial building in Ciudad del Este on the border with Brazil. Weapons and documents were seized, but no arrests were made.

Brazilian federal police reported that agents assisted them from Paraguay, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates. The investigation was also authorized in France, Morocco, Belgium, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

According to the PF, the investigation began about two years ago to combat international cocaine trafficking operated by members of an international organization that had allied with the two largest Brazilian criminal groups to ship the drug from Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru to several European countries.

“It was a complex investigation from the origin of the cocaine to its export to Europe. The results are remarkable. Ten tons of drugs, 15 million reais (about $2.9 million) and many goods were seized,” Rio de Janeiro Federal Police Commissioner Tácio Muzzi told reporters.

Investigators also seized real estate, jewelry, and luxury vehicles. It is estimated that the international gang moved about 250 million reais (about $48 million).

During Tuesday’s operation, a confrontation between officers and criminals occurred in the Vila Cruzeiro favela in Penha. According to federal police, the gang stored the drugs in the community to ship them to Europe. (Report by Rodrigo Viga Gaier, translated from Spanish by Daniela Desantis).