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Riots Reveal Organized Crime Power in Brazil

Last weekend, Brazilians living in the				that the security sector here has a long way
greater Sao Paulo metropolitan area witnessed				to go before it has any significant control
one of the country's largest prison riots in				over organized crime. These rebellions also
the past five years, organized and				highlight the superior communication networks
orchestrated by Sao Paulo's largest criminal				operated by Brazilian organized crime.
faction, the First Capital Command (PCC in				Communication is fundamental When Fernandinho
Portuguese).When Sao Paulo state authorities				Beira-Mar was transferred from his prison
transferred some 756 PCC leaders, the PCC				cell in Rio de Janeiro after he orchestrated
criminal enterprise, led by Willians Herbas				a prison riot there in September 2002 to mask
Camacho (a.k.a. Marcola), implemented its				the assassination of rival gang leaders,
plan to start riots in dozens of prisons in				authorities found a number of luxury items
Sao Paulo and around the country. They took				including silk pajamas. But what surprised
advantage of the unusually lax security				them more was the number of abandoned cell
environment over the weekend when some 10,000				phones. Reports from Rio de Janeiro daily, O
prisoners were given a day pass to visit				Globo, claim that Beira-Mar used up to a
families on the outside for Mother's Day, and				dozen cell phones to communicate with
thousands more civilians entered prisons to				lieutenants and other subordinates in his
visit inmates on the inside.As one prison				black market network of guns and drugs
after another fell under the control of				shipments and sales.In a similar fashion,
rioting inmates, the hostage count rocketed				leaders of the PCC use cell phones to
into the hundreds. Meanwhile, organized				communicate with one another between prisons
attacks on police stations around Sao Paulo				and between prisoners and gang members on the
kept security forces busy defending				outside. Both the Civil Police and the
themselves. At the same time, masked gunmen				Federal Police operate listening posts, which
commandeered city buses, ordering them				enable security officials to piece together
evacuated before burning them to the				actionable intelligence on plans for
ground.The weekend's total included over 250				rebellions and other gang operations.
separate attacks on police stations, stores,				However, the use of two-way radios has made
and other establishments. There were 115				that task much more difficult.In both Rio and
people killed, including 32 policemen and				Sao Paulo, two-way radios are used by
prison guards and 71 gang members. Another 49				criminals to relay messages to other
people were injured. Some 215 hostages were				incarcerated gang members and members on the
taken in 73 prison riots that occurred in				outside. In some cases, one prisoner calls
prisons across Sao Paulo, Parana, Matto				via cell a subordinate on the outside who
Grosso do Sul, Brasilia, and Bahia, according				uses a two-way radio to transmit the message
to Brazilian daily Folha de Sao Paulo. Over				to a third individual who then uses another
80 public transport buses were burned and one				cell phone to pass along the message to its
metro station was attacked, leaving over five				recipient in another prison, reports O Globo.
million people without public transport. On				Each node on the communications chain may use
15 May, as millions of people fled home in				any number of cell phones or two-way radios,
the early afternoon, Sao Paulo became a city				making tracking the signals very
of gridlock spanning 203 kilometers of				difficult.Attempts to block cell phone
roadways.Over the weekend, as the violence				signals in Rio and Sao Paulo have been
raged on, Brazilian Justice Minister Marcio				ineffective.In the middle of the Mother's Day
Thomas Bastos offered the service of 4,000				weekend riots, requests to shut down cell
soldiers, part of a National Force trained to				phone towers used by criminals to relay
help contain the security problems in				signals were presented to Brazil's
Brazilian states. But Sao Paulo Governor				telecommunications regulatory body when Marco
Claudio Lembo, filling in for presidential				Antonio Desgualdo, the head of the Sao Paulo
candidate Geraldo Alckmin, refused to accept				state Civil Police, met with this body,
federal help. Bastos made the trip from				called Anatel, on 15 May. The Folha de Sao
Brasilia to Sao Paulo to again offer federal				Paulo reported that after the meeting
assistance during a close-door meeting on				Desgualdo announced that authorities would
Monday, 15 May. But again it was refused.By				not be able to shut down cell towers without
16 May, as quickly as the violence had				the acquiescence of telecommunications
started, it ended, and most prisons were back				companies.These same companies - Vivo, Tim,
in the control of state authorities, and				Telefonica, Embratel, and Nextel - complain
policemen were no longer the target of random				that shutting down the towers would mean an
attacks. The Sao Paulo daily newspaper, O				unacceptable disruption of service for their
Estado de Sao Paulo, reported on 16 May that				law-abiding clients. Nothing short of a court
the state government had reached an agreement				order would shut down the towers, a legal
with the PCC. Government officials continue				instrument that takes too long to obtain.In
to deny that claim, but it is possible such				some prison systems, cell phone signal
negotiations were a last-resort option for				blockers are used, but they are quickly
state officials clearly caught off guard by a				rendered obsolete by the rapid pace of
highly organized criminal network, one many				technological advancement in cell phone
believed had been dismantled years ago.				systems.The battle between Sao Paulo
Brazilian organized crime The PCC began to				authorities and the cell phone companies to
take shape in 1993, when prisoners				shut down towers in the event of security
incarcerated in Taubate state prison in Sao				needs began in February 2001, when PCC
Paulo organized themselves to fight against				members used cell phones to orchestrate
deplorable living conditions and more rights				simultaneous riots in 29 prisons across Sao
within the prison system. Over the past 13				Paulo. Security officials failed to win the
years, this organization has grown into one				battle then, too, but no one knew that such
of the country's most powerful prison				decisions five years ago would eventually
criminal networks, controlling activity				facilitate the most violent uprising of
within dozens of prisons in Sao Paulo and				Brazilian organized crime in years.
around the country, as well as important				Corruption and politics Even as blocking cell
sales points and transport routes for drugs				signals and other methods to impede
and guns flowing into Brazil from source				communication between criminals evolves into
countries such as Paraguay, Bolivia,				what may become a viable solution, many
Colombia, and Suriname.The PCC became more				believe that such time is wasted on treating
active outside prisons in 1999, when Rio's				a problem that is not central to the real
top criminal organization - the Red Command				reason why the PCC was able to orchestrate
(CV in Portuguese) - formed an alliance with				such a widespread reign of disorder and
PCC members who lived in Heliopolis, a				rebellion. Corruption and politics, two of
shantytown located in the southeastern zone				the usual suspects behind systemic
of Sao Paulo, according to a Rio de Janeiro				dysfunction in democracies, are at the center
Federal Police officer who asked to remain				of Brazil's security problems.Bribes paid to
anonymous. Through this alliance, the CV				security officials at all levels keep leaders
sought to shift some of its drug trafficking				of the PCC and the CV well informed of
activities from Rio de Janeiro to Sao Paulo.				official planning. When authorities planned
In Rio, CV leaders had been constantly				to move over 700 of the PCC leaders to a more
harassed by police who exacted an extortion				secure prison environment to avoid what they
tax for allowing favelas (shantytowns) to be				learned was a planned Mother's Day rebellion,
used as drug sales centers and contraband				the PCC reacted by launching its rebellion
transshipment points. Additionally, the PCC				two days early, disrupting the prisoner
in 1999 was a large criminal organization				transport and a host of other activities
with more manpower than economic activity.				planned to prevent the rebellion.Low salaries
Its alliance with the CV increased earnings				exacerbate corruption because policemen and
for the PCC in Sao Paulo, while opening a new				some lower-ranking members of the military
pool of man power for the CV to defend its				are more likely to sell weapons from poorly
turf from rival gangs in Rio de				organized stock piles to make ends meet. Over
Janeiro.Together, the two gangs control the				70 per cent of the weapons used by Brazilian
drug trade in Brazil's two largest cities.				organized crime were made in Brazil. Many of
They operate gun smuggling routes out of				them are sold to Paraguay where they enter
Paraguay and purchase weapons from corrupt				the black market before returning to Brazil.
policemen and military soldiers in Sao Paulo				Yet a significant amount are sold to
and Rio. High-level members of these gangs,				criminals directly from stockpiles of seized
especially the CV, continue to conduct a				weapons.When budgets must be prepared,
weapons-for-cocaine barter with members of				politics dictate who gets what slice of the
the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of				pie. From 2004 to 2005, the Brazilian federal
Colombia (FARC) based in the Colombian				government reduced resources for the
Amazon.As recently as 30 April, three				country's Penitentiary Fund by 37 per cent.
Colombians opened fire on a Brazilian patrol				This fund oversees the overall improvement
on the Rio Negro, a branch of the Amazon				and maintenance of Brazil's prison system.
river that begins in an area of the Colombian				Meanwhile, the government of Sao Paulo state
Amazon reportedly controlled by the FARC.				diverted from public security spending some
Brazilian authorities claim that the rifles				US$81.3 million in the last five years. It
were stamped with the Brazilian military coat				was a decision in the reduction of security
of arms. The men were followed to the				spending at the Sao Paulo state level that
Colombian city of San Felipe, where their				was likely made after the 2001 prison riots
arms were confiscated. Brazilian Federal				in that state.Commenting on the event,
Police investigators told ISN Security Watch				Brazilian President Luiz Inacio
that they believe the arms were part of a				"Lula" da Silva said it was a
cache of weapons to be traded for cocaine				demonstration of the power of organized crime
that traffickers would transport to Sao Paulo				in Brazil. His comments underline the fact
and Rio.Red Command leader Fernandinho				that Brazilian organized crime is a force
Beira-Mar is considered to have been one of				that has grown to threaten Brazilian cities
the first Brazilian criminals to trade				as well as the nation. With links to
weapons for cocaine with the FARC. He was				organized crime in Paraguay and Suriname, and
arrested by Colombian authorities in April				a thriving barter system with Colombia's FARC
2001 and immediately extradited to Brazil.				soldiers, the PCC and CV may soon become
Yet the recent incident on the				internationally known as a criminal network
Brazilian-Colombian border in the Amazon				that has grown too big for Brazil's security
indicates that five years later, this				system to handle.Sam Logan ( is an
criminal exchange program still continues to				investigative journalist who has reported on
supply the CV and the PCC with pure,				security, energy, politics, economics,
Colombian cocaine.Brazilian organized crime				organized crime, terrorism, and black markets
is just as powerful within the prison system				in Latin America since 1999. He is currently
as it is on the outside. And as the battle				completing his work on Nice Guys Die First, a
continues to dismantle these criminal				forthcoming non-fiction narrative about
networks, the occasional mega-rebellion				organized crime in Brazil.
reminds Brazilian authorities and civilians

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Riots Reveal Organized Crime Power in Brazil