Rio Crime Blotter: A Genuine Bombshell in the Barra da Tijuca

In Rio, the problem was never the Red Command, but the “Blue Command,” the military police. The problem is police corruption. There is this impression that crime is high in Brazil. It’s not. Police corruption is high. Criminality flows from the corruption of the police. When the police stop being corrupt, crime goes down. When kids [interviewed in Falcão: Children of the Traffic] say they pay part of the cop’s salary, that’s true. The traffic, in reality, is a partner of the Brazilian police. –Hélio Luz, former chief of the Rio state judicial police, to the Zero Hora newspaper, May 2007. See Top Rio Cops: “Their Priority Was to Protect The Mafia”

Bombeiros acusados de assaltar empresário se entregam: The armed robbers dressed as federal police who used a phony arrest to steal R$30,000 and an SUV from a local businessman?

Both were Rio de Janeiro firemen — part of the same organization, and subject to the same parallel military justice, as the state military police. One fireman worked for the state Civil Defense department, the other in the offices of the fire brigade’s high command.

An Estado de S. Paulo news photographer happened upon the scene and captured the whole thing, enabling the identification of the culprits.

Now that’s a good, old-fashioned scoop! On other recent crime-blotter newsflow on the Comando Azul in the swankiest neighborhood in the cidade maravilha, see

• Rio: “Palace Guard and Militiaman Pimped Child Sex Slaves on Upscale Beach”
• Rio: More on Alleged Militiaman-Pimp

Os bombeiros Tito Livio de Paula Franco e Antônio Lázaro da Silva Franco, flagrados na quarta-feira, 15, pelo Estado quando, disfarçados de policiais federais, assaltaram e tentaram seqüestrar um empresário na Barra da Tijuca, chegaram na tarde desta quinta à Delegacia Anti-Seqüestro no Leblon, zona sul do Rio. Eles se entregaram ao delegado Fernando Moraes, titular da DAS, em Imbariê, em Duque de Caxias, na Baixada Fluminense.

Firemen Tito Livio de Paula Franco and Antônio Lázaro da Silva Franco, caught in the act on Wednesday, August 15, by this newspaper while they assaulted and attempted to kidnap a businessman in the Barra da Tijuca while disguised as federal police agents, turned themselves in to the Anti-Kidnapping Division in Leblon, Southern District, Rio de Janeiro.

Tito é lotado no gabinete do comando-geral do Corpo de Bombeiros, e Antonio Lázaro trabalha na subsecretaria de Defesa Civil do Estado, de acordo com a Polícia.

Tito is assigned to the office of the Fire Brigade high command, while Antonio Lázaro works in the state Civil Defense department.

Informantes da Polícia Civil, com ligações com a DAS e 59ª DP (Duque de Caxias), ambos tinham ficha limpa e conseguiram algumas regalias: negociaram se render em troca de ficarem presos na DAS – e não na 16ª DP, da área onde o crime foi cometido – e chegaram sem estarem algemados. A DAS não informou se apresentará os criminosos à imprensa.

Both men are judicial police informants with ties to the special operations division and the 59th Precinct in Duque de Caixias, have no criminal records, and managed to obtain certain advantages: They negotiated their surrender in exchange for being held at the DAS rather than the 16th Precinct, where the crime was committed, and were not handcuffed. The DAS did not say whether it would display the criminals to the press.

That is, if they would perp-walk these bozos in the time-honored fashion.

Uma fonte contou ao Estado que os acusados eram conhecidos em Duque de Caxias como policiais, não como bombeiros, e circulavam livremente na 59ª DP, onde, inclusive, davam plantões e atendiam ao público. O delegado titular, Antônio Flores, porém, nega essa afirmação.

A source told the Estadão that the accused were known in Duque de Caxias as policemen, not firemen, and came and went freely at the 59th Precinct, where they even pulled shifts and attended the public. The precinct caption, Antônio Flores, however, denies this.

Voz de prisão

“You are under arrest”

“Você está preso por lavagem de dinheiro”. Com essa frase, o empresário M.A.S. foi surpreendido, na tarde da quarta-feira, 15, por três homens vestidos de policiais federais, num golpe que resultou em roubo de R$ 30 mil e tentativa de seqüestro. O crime ocorreu em uma das mais movimentadas ruas da Barra da Tijuca, na zona oeste do Rio.

“You are under arrest for money laundering.” With that phrase, businessman M.A.S. was surprised on Wednesday afternoon by three men dressed as federal police agents (above) in a scam that led to the theft of R$30,000 in cash and an attempted kidnapping. The crime took place on one of the busiest streets in the Barra da Tijuca in the Western District of Rio.

Militia country.

A cena foi flagrada pela reportagem do Estadão, que registrou em fotografias a abordagem ao empresário, dono de uma casa de câmbio e turismo. Ele resistiu com socos e tapas às investidas dos supostos agentes. Ao perceberem a presença do fotógrafo, os bandidos deixaram o empresário e levaram os cerca de R$ 30 mil que estavam com ele, além de seu automóvel.

The scene was captured by an Estado photographer who recorded the stop and search of the man, who owns a currency exchange and tourism office. He resisted the attacks of the supposed police agents with his fists. Noticing the presence of the photographer, the bandits left the businessman alone and carried off nearly R$30,000 he had with him, along with his automobile.

That photographer took a chance.

O diretor executivo da PF, Zulmar Pimentel, informou ao Estadão que, numa investigação preliminar, não foram identificados entre os criminosos nenhum agente federal. Ele disse ainda que não estava prevista nenhuma operação oficial da PF na Barra da Tijuca na tarde desta quarta. Pimentel informou que a polícia continua trabalhando no caso, para identificar os homens.

Federal police executive director Zulmar Pimentel told this newspaper that a preliminary investigation did not identify any federal agents among the three men. He also said no federal police raid had been planned for the Barra da Tijuca yesterday. Pimentel reported that police continue in the effort to identify the men.

The Estadão has apparently recycled an old paragraph here, given that two of them are now identified.

De acordo com o relato do empresário, o crime, ocorrido na Avenida Armando Lombardi, a principal rua comercial da Barra, começou a ser tramado pela manhã. Foi quando um funcionário de sua empresa recebeu o telefonema de um homem, que se identificou como vendedor da concessionária Ago Veículos, de nome Fernando.

According to the businessman’s account, the crime, which took place on Armando Lombardi Avenue, the main commercial drag of the Barra, began to unfold during the morning. That was when an employee of his firm got a telephone call from a man who identified himself as a salesman from an Ago Vehicles [auto agency] franchise named Fernando.

O impostor disse que um cliente precisava trocar US$ 15 mil, para a compra de um veículo da marca Mercedes-Benz. Em seguida, o funcionário da casa de câmbio ligou para a concessionária e confirmou a existência de um vendedor chamado Fernando.

The impostor said a client of his needed to change US$15,000 to buy a Mercedes Benz. Next, the employee of the currency exchange house called the autombile agency to verify that a Fernando worked there.

Apressado, o rapaz não conversou diretamente com o suposto vendedor e passou imediatamente a transação a um dos sócios da firma. Ele pegou a quantia solicitada em reais e partiu para a concessionária, levando consigo boletos do Banco Central necessários para fechar o negócio.

In a hurry, they fellow did not speak directly with the supposed salesman, and immediately handed the transaction over to one of the partners in the firm he worked for. He got the amount required in local currency and headed off to the auto agency, carrying enough bank notes to close the transaction.

Na Avenida Armando Lombardi, um Honda Civic preto, modelo CLX, placa JMS- 2200, com um giroscópio ligado no teto, emparelhou com o carro do empresário, uma Tracker Chevrolet prata. “Eles disseram: ‘pára, que é Polícia Federal’ e mostraram distintivos e armas. Eu me assustei, mas decidi parar”, relatou.

On Lombardi Ave., a black Honda Civic CLX, license plate JMS-2200, with a police flasher on the roof, pulled up alongside the businessman’s silver Chevy Tracker. “They said, ‘Stop, federal police!’ and showed me badges and guns. I was scared, but I decided to stop,” he said.

Ao sair do carro, o empresário recebeu “voz de prisão” dos supostos policiais: “Eles disseram que eu estava sendo preso por lavagem de dinheiro. Achei estranho, porque sei que não estou sendo investigado por nada. Reagi e eles disseram: ‘quer morrer, meu irmão?’”, revelou. A partir desse momento, ele entrou em luta corporal com os homens, e chegou a ter mão direita algemada.

On getting out of the car, the man heard the men declare him under arrest. “They said I was being arrested for money laundering. I thought that was weird, because I know I am not being investigated for anything. I fought back and they said, ‘You wanna die, bro?’” From that moment on, he engaged in a physical struggle with the men and ended up with his right hand cuffed.

Uma equipe de reportagem do Estadão, que se preparava para almoçar num restaurante próximo ao local, estranhou a movimentação e se aproximou. Ao chegar mais perto, o fotógrafo pensou que se tratava de uma operação da PF. Ao perceberem sua presença, os criminosos largaram o empresário, ainda de algema na mão, e fugiram. Um dos homens levou o carro dele com o dinheiro e os boletos do Banco Central.

A news team from this newspaper that was preparing to lunch in a nearby restaurant thought the activity strange and approached. Upon getting closer, the photographer thought he was seeing a federal police operation. When the criminals sensed his presence, they let the victim go, with the handcuffs still on his hand, and fled. One of the men made off with the man’s care and the bank notes.