Rio de Janeiro police officers denounced for extortion

The Public Prosecutor's Office of the State of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ) has denounced three civil police officers and one other man for participating in an armed criminal association in São Gonçalo. The group allegedly used official police vehicles, uniforms, and weapons to extort scrap metal, recycling, and waste disposal businesses.

Under the guise of conducting inspections, the suspects would claim there were administrative or environmental irregularities to intimidate business owners. In one instance involving a recycling company, the suspects reportedly demanded R$ 300,000, later reducing the demand to R$ 100,000 plus monthly payments after the victim refused the initial amount.

Authorities have executed four arrest warrants and six search and seizure warrants following the investigation. The prosecution noted that the use of police structure provided a false appearance of legality to the extortion attempts.