Brazil police crack down on drug trafficking, contraband and theft in multiple operations
Police forces in several Brazilian states carried out a series of operations targeting illicit activities. In Nova Olímpia (Mato Grosso), a 41‑year‑old woman was arrested with 495 boxes (99 000 units) of foreign cigarettes, seized from a Chevrolet Prisma on the MT‑343 highway. In Toledo (Paraná), a man with a Toyota‑logo tattoo was detained for stealing luxury pickups after police recovered a stolen Hilux and a key‑programmer device.
Drug busts were reported across the country: a couple and a 16‑year‑old girl were caught with 60 portions of marijuana and cocaine base in Cáceres (Mato Grosso); a woman on a long‑distance bus in Paraná was found with nearly 19 kg of cannabis; officers in Ouro Branco (Minas Gerais) seized multiple parcels of marijuana, cocaine and crack ready for sale. In Apucarana (Paraná), a ROTAM team uncovered cannabis, crack, cocaine, ammunition, cash and radios at a teenager’s residence. A joint operation in Muriaé (Minas Gerais) and Vila Velha (Espírito Santo) dismantled a fraud ring that used fake flood‑relief donations to defraud victims nationwide.
Other incidents included a firearm confrontation in Canguaretama (Rio Grande do Norte) that ended with two guns seized, and an armed clash on the Fernão Dias highway where criminals attempted to retrieve a stolen cargo of hearing‑aid devices worth R$ 743 000, resulting in a shoot‑out with police but no arrests.