Brazil: Over 132 dead and 80 arrested in mega police operation in northern Rio de Janeiro against the country's largest criminal gang

The north of Rio de Janeiro, specifically in the Complexo do Alemão and Penha, lived hours of anxiety this Tuesday when a mega police operation, with more than 2,500 agents deployed, was launched against the feared gang Red Command (Comando Vermelho) to capture its leaders, leaving more than 132 dead and more than 80 arrested, according to the Rio de Janeiro Public Defender's Office.

The state governor, Cláudio Castro,had warned when about 60 dead were reported that the figure "was going to change" as the dead were counted at the morgue. In the last few hours, the ombudsman's office confirmed the new count in a mail to AFP: "The latest update is 132 dead."

The area, according to the Brazilian press, became a real war zone, with local police officers entering the Carioca favelas to kill and arrest alleged members and leaders of the criminal organization, which is increasingly expanding throughout Brazil. In response to the police incursion, members of the Red Command (Comando Vermelho) used drones with explosives to try to limit the mega-operation. The result: four police officers killed.

According to the government of Rio de Janeiro, headed by the former president's ally Jair Bolsonaro, Cláudio Castro, of the Liberal Party, led the deadliest operation in the city's history, far surpassing the Jacarezinho massacre of 2021, in which 28 people died, including a policeman. The Complexo do Alemão and Penha are home to approximately 280,000 people.

In addition to the drones with grenades, the Red Command (Comando Vermelho) criminals also shot at the policemen with high-caliber rifles capable of shooting down helicopters, blocking the passage with barricades formed by hijacked buses.

Likewise, videos captured by neighbors in the area showed bursts equivalent to some 200 shots per minute. At the same time, messages were detected in WhatsApp community groups in which alleged drug traffickers intimidated the population - especially motorcycle deliverymen from delivery apps - to use their motorcycles to block all access to the intervened favelas.

The bus hijacking caused local public transport shortages and a partial collapse of the city. Rio residents, en masse, flocked to the subway to return to their homes, even those who live far from the northern zone. In this way, hundreds of thousands avoided the intense traffic and the most conflictive areas of the city.

Given the situation, many local companies and small businesses decided to release their workers early so that they could return home earlier. By 16:00 (local time), most were already on the subway back. Tens of thousands, to their misfortune, had to walk more than an hour to get home at the height of rush hour.

"The city is a mess," a local businessman told VOZ, who was on his way to participate in a trade fair in Central de Cidade."It's perhaps the worst day in Rio's history." 

Another local businessman, on his way to the trade fair, mentioned that his commute was slowed by heavy traffic and that he was taking the subway home. According to a photo he sent to VOZ, it was crowded. "Avoid the night," he stated.

A city on high alert

The day is part of "Operation Containment," a permanent program of the Rio de Janeiro government aimed at curbing Red Command's expansion. Although it is an ongoing strategy, this phase has been the most tragic in terms of casualties. The magnitude of the confrontation led the city's Operations and Resilience Center to raise the operational level to 2 out of 5, which implies the full deployment of the Military Police and the suspension of all administrative tasks of the corporation.

The local government fears a violent reaction from criminal factions in the coming hours, with possible attacks against police stations or ambushes of agents. At the same time, the authorities showed part of the seized arsenal on social media, among them 72 assault rifles used by Red Command (Comando Vermelho) groups in urban warfare actions inside the favelas.

Rio's duality: North and South

While the north lived complex hours, affecting the surroundings, the southern part of the city maintained a usual, everyday calm. Restaurants, bars and hotels maintained their normal schedules, while tourists walked along the Copacabana waterfront and sat in the various establishments that cover the extensive beach.

Two cab drivers consulted by VOZ spoke of the mega-operation. Both downplayed the importance of the matter.

"This is a common thing that always happens in the north. Around here, everything is calm, normal," one said.

The other cab driver, who was driving a Nissan Kicks and is a resident of Rio's northern zone, said the situation was complicated but seemed to be under more control. "Here, in the south, nothing happens. I worked all day without a problem," he told VOZ.

Both testimonies show the duality of Rio, a massive city with favelas mired in violence and tourist areas, thriving and mostly oblivious to the problems of violence in the peripheries. Thus, while some experienced the chaos, others barely heard the news on the radio or television stations.

Confrontation between the federal government and the Rio de Janeiro Governor's Office

Meanwhile, the federal government announced the dispatch of a delegation to Rio de Janeiro to hold an emergency meeting with Governor Cláudio Castro, who complained about the lack of support from Lula da Silva's administration. The delegation will be composed of ministers Ricardo Lewandowski (Justice) and Rui Costa (Civil House), as well as senior commanders of the Federal Police, to coordinate actions and assess the security situation in the state.

The announcement came amid a crossfire of accusations between the federal and Rio governments. Castro denounced the lack of support from the union and the refusal to provide armored vehicles from the Armed Forces, stating: "We had requests denied three times: to provide armored vehicles, there had to be GLO, and the president [Lula] is against GLO. Every day there is a reason not to collaborate." The Ministry of Defense responded that any such request could only be met through a presidential decree under the Guarantee of Law and Order (GLO), a measure that the Federal Executive refuses to apply.