The Brazilian Police have carried out a nationwide action on outstanding warrants, making over two thousand arrests and confiscating hundreds of kilos of drugs, in the second such "mega-operation" in recent months.
The goal of the national effort, named "Operation PC 27," was to clamp down on drug trafficking, car thefts and the sale of pirated goods, reported Globo. The operation involved more than 4,600 police officers and took place in all 26 states and the Federal District.
The crackdown resulted in the arrests of 2,067 people, among them 18 military police accused of drug trafficking, murder and car theft. Police also confiscated 255 firearms, 47 kilos of cocaine, nearly 178 kilos of marijuana and 11 kilos of crack, according to the Folha.
Martha Rocha, President of the National Council of Chiefs of Police (Civil Concp), which proposed the operation, stated the goal was to "promote the integration of the police of the country, strengthening the contact and exchange of information between institutions."
InSight Crime Analysis
The country-wide effort to serve outstanding warrants is the second of its kind to take place recently. The first "mega operation," staged last month, targeted corruption in 12 states and resulted in 92 arrests.
Following the operation, Brazil's attorney general said it was intended as a sow of force to counter the proposed constitutional amendment (PEC 37), which would make criminal investigations the exclusive territory of the Federal and Civil Police, thereby curtailing the investigative power of the Military Police.
It is unclear at this stage whether this latest operation also had political motives or was simply the police flexing their muscles in the face rising criminality.
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