Brazil’s Federal Police Cocaine Seizures More Than Doubled in Four Years

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The result, which is not final, was released yesterday, December 12th, during the review of actions taken by the Ministry of Justice and Public Safety throughout this year.

The data provided by the General Director of the Federal Police, Maurício Valeixo, show that the volume of drugs seized has been growing gradually year after year.

In 2016, the Federal Police alone pulled 39 tons of cocaine out of circulation. In 2017, it reached 46 tons. In 2018, just over 73 tons were seized.

By the beginning of December this year, the result already exceeded 98.4 tons. Valeixo expects that the total will exceed 100 tons by the end of the month.

“This shows an increase, due to the work pattern that has been developed by the unit specialized in the international fight against drug trafficking,” said the general director.

The result goes is reversed when it comes to marijuana seizures by the Federal Police. After a hike in 2017, when almost 326 tons of grass were confiscated, the volume seized fell: 251 tons in 2018 and 223 tons in 2019.

The drop can be explained by the greater number of marijuana plants located and destroyed by federal police, approximately 3.4 tons. The number, according to Valeixo, represents a record and exceeds the sum of the results recorded in 2017 (1.01 tons) and in 2018 (1.45 tons).

The Federal Highway Police (PRF) also recorded a 26 percent increase in the seizure of cocaine over the past 11 months, compared to last year, totaling 23 tons seized on federal highways alone.

Source: Agência Brasil

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