"Liga da Justiça" - Years on the run: Rio's most wanted criminal arrested
In Brazil, the most wanted criminal in the metropolis of Rio de Janeiro has been arrested. Luis Antônio da Silva Braga, known as Zinho, had been on the run since 2018 and had handed himself in to the police, the federal police announced on Christmas Eve (local time).
He is considered the leader of Rio's largest militia, the "Liga da Justiça" (League of Justice), and is "Rio's number one enemy" according to the governor of the state, Cláudio Castro. There are at least twelve arrest warrants against him. He surrendered after negotiations between his lawyers and the federal police and the state's Public Security Secretariat, it was reported.
"This is another important result of the serious and planned work being carried out in Rio de Janeiro and other states to combat criminal organizations," said Brazil's Justice Minister Flávio Dino, according to the state news agency Agencia Brasil.
Militias are made up of active and former police officers who are involved in drug trafficking and protection rackets. They decide who gets electricity, gas and running water in the regions they control. Zinho's crime syndicate dominates Rio's western zone in particular. As recently as October, at least 35 buses and a train were set on fire there after the nephew and right-hand man of the militia chief had been killed by the police. The violence led to the closure of schools and paralyzed traffic in many places. The police assume that the buses set on fire were an act of revenge by the militia.
Read also:
- Snow chaos further restricts Bavaria
- "Zoltan" sweeps across the country - disruptions to rail traffic
- "Zoltan" brings masses of water, rail chaos and suspected tornadoes
- Heavy rain and snow expected after storm depression
Source: www.stern.de
