Rio Gang Violence Includes Grenades and Reptiles

By Jessalyn Mastrianni
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

RIO DE JANEIRO - Brazil’s slums have been overrun by violent drug-trafficking gangs.  Regular battles have led to violence between rival gangs.  Police have been fighting these gangs in increasingly violent conflicts recently.  The police received two surprising discoveries this week.

First, a man was arrested on Tuesday for attempting to sell and deliver a 9mm pistol, ammunition, a grenade launcher, and 23 hand grenades to Rio de Janeiro.  Authorities have said he was going to sell these weapons to the gang called the “Red Command” but was caught during a routine drug check on the bus heading toward Rio.

The next day, police conducted a raid in one of the slums.   Instead of finding the drug gang lord they were searching for, they found caimans in the back yard of a house owned by the mother-in-law of an alleged drug dealer.  Caimans are crocodile-like reptiles and authorities said these animals were used by drug-trafficking gangs.  They were used not only to intimidate rivals, but also to dispose of bodies after a conflict between gangs.  This has led authorities to believe that the gangs are using more brutal methods than they expected. 

The animals were sent to a local zoo and three arrests were made.  A few guns and a small amount of drugs were also confiscated.

For more information, please see:

BBC – Reptile shock for Rio drug police- 4 September 2008

Reuters life! – Rio drug gang fed rivals to caimans: Brazilian police – 3 September 2008

AP – Brazil Police Arrest Man Carrying 23 Grenades – 2 September 2008