Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – Five militarized police officers who participated in the deadliest operation in Rio de Janeiro, which left at least 122 dead in two sets of favelas late October, were arrested on Friday, according to official sources.
10 uniformed officers, all belonging to the Shock Battalion, are under investigation by the Military Police for alleged crimes committed during the operation, the agency confirmed to EFE.
The agency’s inspection office conducted the investigation based on images obtained from body cameras worn by officers during the operation. A total of 2,500 officers participated in the operation from Oct. 28 through the early morning of Oct. 29.
The investigation of the images revealed “evidence of military crimes committed during service.”
The Military Police statement does not specify the nature of the evidence; however, local media reported that one of the detainees stole a rifle during the operation, intending to resell it to criminal groups.
The detained officers were placed at the disposal of the Batalhão de Operações Policiais Especiais inspection office. The others were suspended from active duty.
In the statement, the Military Police affirmed that they do not tolerate any misconduct or crimes committed by their members and will rigorously sanction those involved if proven guilty.
The mega-operation left over a hundred people dead, including five police officers, and resulted in the detention of 117 individuals accused of having ties to criminal organizations. The operation aimed to capture important leaders of Comando Vermelho, the largest and oldest criminal organization in Rio de Janeiro, with branches throughout the country.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva criticized the police operation coordinated by the government of Rio de Janeiro, calling it “disastrous” and a “massacre.”
The Prosecutor’s Office’s initial report, sent to the Supreme Court, indicated that two bodies had “atypical injuries” inconsistent with conventional armed confrontations.
One of the deceased had marks from close-range shots, and the other one was decapitated.
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