Rio de janeiro's civil police conducted an operation in the penha and alemão complexes, seizing 120 weapons including 93 rifles and estimating a r$ 12.8 million loss to the comando vermelho. The arsenal, of international origin, reveals smuggling routes and the faction's national expansion. Suspects used drones to resist the police action.
The operation, carried out on tuesday (28) in the penha and alemão complexes in rio de janeiro's north zone, was prepared for over a year with 60 days of specific planning, targeting comando vermelho (cv) leaders. During the action, which lasted about 12 hours, the civil police seized 120 weapons, including 93 high-caliber rifles valued at r$ 5.3 million, plus explosives, ammunition, drugs, and military equipment. The total loss to the cv was estimated at r$ 12.8 million by the weapons and explosives oversight coordinator.
Initial tracking identified rifles from g3 (german), fal (belgian), ak-47 (russian), and ar (american) platforms, originating from at least seven countries, including brazil, venezuela, argentina, peru, belgium, russia, and germany. Some were diverted from those countries' armed forces, and many are fake copies or assembled from smuggled parts via paraguay and the amazon. "It stands out that over 90% of the ar platform rifles are fake copies – reproductions that fire and can kill, but do not have the manufacturing standard of the originals," said delegate vinícius domingos.
Inscriptions on the weapons reference the tropa do lampião, a northeast group linked to the cv, evidencing the faction's national expansion. Of the 117 people killed in the confrontation (folha source indicates 117 men, while another mention suggests 121), 54 were from other states like pará, amazonas, bahia, and ceará. Suspects used drones to launch bombs at police teams.
Secretary felipe curi emphasized: "We are facing a typical war scenario arsenal. These weapons are used in the world's most violent contemporary wars, like syria and yemen. Identifying routes and those responsible for bringing these weapons to rio is the next step to weaken the military power of criminal organizations." Governor cláudio castro stated that the state is acting rigorously against narcotraffic. The weapons are under forensic examination, with data to be shared with the army.