Bala na Cara
Bala na Cara (BNC) is a prominent criminal group in Brazil's southern state of Rio Grande do Sul.
A government registry in Brazil has been used to designate millions of hectares of Amazon forest as rural lands, in a process that critics say fuels state-sanctioned land grabs and…
Paraná is a hub for drug trafficking. Vast quantities of cocaine and marijuana enter the state from Paraguay, via the Paraná River, and from Foz do Iguaçu.
Santa Catarina is a launchpad for cocaine destined for Europe and a transit point for marijuana and contraband headed to the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul and Uruguay.
Mato Grosso do Sul is among Brazil’s most strategic states for transnational crime.
Strategically located between Argentina and Uruguay, Rio Grande do Sul is a hub for contraband and drug smuggling.
Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, has seen some important security advances in recent years, taking dozens of communities in Rio de Janeiro from criminal gangs through its innovative UPP security…
Escritório do Crime (Office of Crime) is one of the largest and most powerful militia groups in Brazil’s second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro.
Marcelo “Piloto” Pinheiro was considered one of the Brazilian government’s most sought-after drug traffickers until 2017. He is believed to have once been the second-in-command of the Red Command (Comando…
Gilberto Aparecido Dos Santos, alias “Fuminho,” is one of the leaders of Brazil’s largest and most powerful criminal organization, the First Capital Command (Primeiro Comando da Capital – PCC).
Family of the North (Familia do Norte - FDN) has long been Brazil’s third-largest criminal group, with a strong presence in northern Brazil but not matching the nationwide presence of…
Marcos Willians Herbas Camacho, known by the aliases “Marcola” and “Playboy,” has been the top leader of Brazil’s biggest and most powerful criminal organization, the First Capital Command (Primeiro Comando…
Amigos dos Amigos is a criminal group based in Brazil’s second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro. The organization was formed in the late 1990s by ex-members of the powerful Red Command…