At least six killed in police operation in a favela in Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro, 20 Mar At least six people were killed this Sunday in an operation carried out by the police in a favela in Rio de Janeiro, which authorities said sought to capture members of a gang dedicated to stealing truck loads. The operation “ended with four criminals imprisoned, six criminals killed and six guns, a grenade, cars and drugs apprehended,” the Militarized Police of the State of Rio de Janeiro said in a brief statement. The events took place in the region known as Chapadão, a group of favelas located in the north of Rio de Janeiro, and according to testimonies gathered by the local press, it began at dawn, when agents broke into a party that was being held in the middle of a square. Major Ivan Blaz, spokesman for the Militarized Police, admitted that the “clashes” began in the middle of that party, in which “there were some criminals” wanted, who “confronted” the authorities, which “prompted the need for intervention.” According to the Police, the area where the events took place is dominated by the so-called Comando Vermelho, an illegal organization dedicated to drug trafficking with which some gangs dedicated to assaulting trucks with various types of goods have been allied. Police violence in Rio de Janeiro, denounced by human rights groups, is of concern even to the Brazilian Supreme Court, which has called on the authorities of that state to present a plan to reduce deaths and abuses in its operations. According to official statistics, policemen are responsible for nearly a quarter of all homicides in Rio de Janeiro. Last year, total homicides in that state fell by 8%, from 3,544 in 2020 to 3,245 in 2021, while civilian deaths by police rose 12% to 1,298. CHIEF ed/cfa