Police in Rio de Janeiro Conduct Largest Ever Drug Bust

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Rio police conducted their largest drug seizure to date during an operation targeting organized crime in the north zone neighborhood of Maré, said Governor Wilson Witzel.

The raid started early Thursday, July 18th, with police using several large armored personal carriers to advance into the community under gunfire.

Maré is notorious for being dominated by several heavily armed factions fighting for territory on a block by block basis. Following extreme ongoing levels of violence, the community was occupied by Brazil’s armed forces from 2014 to 2015.

It is located less than 2 KM from Rio’s Galeão — Tom Jobim International Airport and sprawls along the main route into the city for those arriving from abroad.

Authorities said that police recovered several tons of cannabis, a large quantity of hashish, and at least 172 kilos of coca paste which could be used to manufacture nearly a ton of cocaine.

In addition to the narcotics, police recovered thirty firearms, including 28 rifles, 75 grenades, and a large number of ammunition. Authorities also recovered an M1919 Browning medium machine gun – a large caliber firearm commonly mounted on aircraft and vehicles – at the crime scene.

Several of the weapons were personalized with the colors of local football teams or stencils with video game characters like Super Mario.

The large majority of the weapons and drugs were stored in a shipping container and were found by trained drug-sniffing dogs. The seizure was conducted by several of Rio’s Special Operations Units, including the BOPE, BAC, and CORE.

In a press conference following the operations, Governor Witzel commended the police on the action.

“These weapons are not utilized by hard-working citizens that live in the community. They are not weapons used by poor, black, and favelados [residents of favelas.] They are weapons used by terrorists that utilize the community as a shield while employing weapons of war,” said Witzel. He added that international cartels were supporting the gangs.

Residents of Maré have said that the timing of police operations puts innocent citizens at risk. A mother from the area said that by starting early in the morning, police were showing up just when children were heading to school.

During the operation, stray bullets hit a nurse at the nearby Fundão hospital. The wound was non-life-threatening. Representatives from the hospital said that because of the location of the medical facility relative to the neighboring communities with difficult security, there is an ongoing risk of stray bullets.