All About Brazil Militias

NEWS

Killing of Brazil's Top Militia Leader Raises More Questions Than it Answers

BRAZIL / 16 JUN 2021

Rio de Janeiro’s foremost militia leader has been gunned down by police, potentially shattering the belief that militias in the city were protected due to connections with authorities. But was…

Gatonet - The Illegal TV Connections Bankrolling Militias in Rio

BRAZIL / 10 JUN 2021

By undercutting legal streaming apps, militia groups are providing an illegal television service to millions of households in Brazil, earning them a fortune and bankrolling other criminal activities.

Could Militia-Red Command Feud Explain Manaus Violence in Brazil?

BRAZIL / 9 JUN 2021

Manaus, the economic heart of Brazil’s Amazon, has come under siege from the Red Command gang after the killing of a top drug leader. But these attacks may be the…

Escritório do Crime

BRAZIL GROUPS / 15 FEB 2021

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.

Rio Militias and Their Complex Empire of Legal Businesses

BRAZIL / 8 JAN 2021

As part of a mounting campaign going after criminal finances, police in Rio de Janeiro have asked courts to seize control of legal businesses used by militia groups to launder…

GameChangers 2020: 3 Ways Criminal Groups Overcame Coronavirus

BRAZIL MILITIAS / 29 DEC 2020

As COVID-19 threatened the well-being of the populations they depend on for criminal income, it was largely in the interest of criminal groups to try and keep the pandemic under…

Why Have Political Assassinations More Than Doubled in Brazil?

BRAZIL / 24 NOV 2020

Political assassinations have marred successive Brazilian elections but the pace of these killings has more than doubled in 2020, with the power of militia groups blamed for much of the…

Militia Tentacles Extend to Rural Areas of Brazil

BRAZIL / 16 AUG 2019

New details about militias in Brazil’s rural areas reveal how these criminal groups have spread rapidly in strategic regions around the country.

Despite Recent Arrests, Rio’s Militias Are Here to Stay

BRAZIL / 12 JUL 2019

Police in Rio de Janeiro have targeted one of the city's oldest and largest militias, but the conditions that first gave rise to these groups decades ago and allowed them…

Militias Become Luxury Real Estate Barons in Rio de Janeiro

BRAZIL / 23 APR 2019

A series of revelations about how militias in Rio de Janeiro are laundering large quantities of money through illegal real estate shines a light on the impunity with which these…

Marielle Franco Arrests Raise Suspicions About Brazil Militia Ties to Bolsonaro Family

BRAZIL / 19 MAR 2019

Two former police officers with links to a militia group have been arrested in the high-profile killing of a Brazilian human rights activist. The same militia may also have ties…

Marielle Franco Insights Show Grim Banality of Brazil Violence

BRAZIL / 18 DEC 2018

New information about the murder of a Rio de Janeiro city councilor may finally bring her killers to justice, but this provides little cause for long-term optimism.

Brazil Police, Politician Tied to High-Profile Rio Activist's Murder

BRAZIL / 10 MAY 2018

New witness testimony suggests the high-profile assassination of a city councilwoman and her driver in Brazil was a coordinated plot among military police, militia members and a city councilman, underscoring…

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InSight Crime Tackles Illegal Fishing

15 OCT 2021

In October, InSight Crime and American University’s Center for Latin American and Latino Studies (CLALS) began a year-long project on illegal, unreported, unregulated (IUU) fishing in…

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8 OCT 2021

In late September, the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) published an excerpt of its forthcoming guide on reporting organized crime in Indonesia.

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1 OCT 2021

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Emergency First Aid in Hostile Environments

24 SEP 2021

At InSight Crime's annual treat, we ramped up hostile environment and emergency first aid training for our 40-member staff, many of whom conduct on-the-ground investigations in dangerous corners of the region.

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Series on Environmental Crime in the Amazon Generates Headlines

17 SEP 2021

InSight Crime and the Igarapé Institute have been delighted at the response to our joint investigation into environmental crimes in the Colombian Amazon. Coverage of our chapters dedicated to illegal mining…

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