Rio de Janeiro police seize top Comando Vermelho arms dealer and arrest murder suspect

Police forces in Rio de Janeiro arrested Gilvan Firmo Margarida, known as "Nego", on 16 April. Identified as the largest supplier of firearms and drugs for the Comando Vermelho, he was stopped on Avenida Brasil in Bangu while using a false identity. Investigators linked him to the logistic chain that moved weapons and narcotics from Paraguay to favela complexes such as Complexo do Alemão, and uncovered his use of a hacker to falsify judicial records.

In a separate operation, police from Espírito Santo and Rio de Janeiro captured Gilbert Wagner Antunes Lopes, nicknamed "Waguinho Batman", on 14 April in the Engenho neighbourhood of Itaguaí. Lopes is accused of ordering the 2021 killing of councilor Marcos Augusto Costalonga (Marquinhos da Cooperativa) from Presidente Kennedy, Espírito Santo. Authorities highlighted his long criminal record involving militia formation and multiple homicides. The arrests were enabled by integrated intelligence work and facial‑recognition tools.