Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 36: High Casualty Civil Police Raid in Rio de Janeiro’s Jacarezinho Favela Raises Human Rights Concerns

Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 36: High Casualty Civil Police Raid in Rio de Janeiro’s Jacarezinho Favela Raises Human Rights Concerns

John P. Sullivan, Robert J. Bunker, and José de Arimatéia da Cruz

On 6 May 2021, at approximately 0600 hours (6 AM), Rio de Janeiro’s civil police (Polícia Civil do Estado do Rio de Janeiro – PCERJ) entered the Jacarezinho favela (slum) to perform a raid—Operação Exceptis(Operation Exception)—against members of the Comando Vermelho (CV or Red Command).  As the PCERJ entered the favela, they encountered small arms fire.  A PCERJ officer was killed in the initial exchange and a sustained battle continued through the day.  At least 28 persons were killed, including the police officer and 27 residents. The incident was the deadliest in Rio de Janeiro’s history and provoked widespread global criticism. 

Blindado CORE (Coordenadoria de Recursos Especiais) (PCERJ Coordination of Special Assets – CORE Armored Car). Source: Fatima Rodrigues, Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Key Information: Flávia Milhorance and Ernesto Londoño, “Police Operation in Rio de Janeiro Leaves at Least 25 Dead.” New York Times. 6 May 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/06/world/americas/brazil-rio-police-shootout.html:

A police operation targeting drug dealers in Rio de Janeiro on Thursday morning left at least 25 people dead, including a police officer, in an operation that officials and human rights activists called the deadliest in the city’s history.

The gun battle in Jacarezinho, a poor and working-class district controlled by the drug gang known as Comando Vermelho, or Red Command, also wounded at least two subway passengers who were struck as their train was caught in the crossfire.

Residents and human rights activists accused the police of using excessive force and questioned why the operation was launched at all, given a Supreme Court ban on law enforcement raids in the city during the pandemic.

Key Information: “Brazil: At least 25 killed in Rio de Janeiro shootout.” BBC News. 6 May 2021, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-57013206:

Police launched the operation after receiving reports that drug traffickers were recruiting children for their gang…

‘’Police in the Brazilian city confirmed the death of one of their officers, Inspector Andre Leonardo de Mello Frias. A statement on Facebook said “he honoured the profession he loved and will be missed”...

…According to local news, the gang targeted in this raid engages in drug trafficking, mugging, murders and kidnappings. 

Television images showed suspects trying to escape across rooftops as police entered the favela.

Key Information: Paulo Renato Soares and Elis Silvestri, “‘Reação da polícia depende da ação do criminoso’, diz secretário de Polícia Civil sobre ação no Jacarezinho.” G1 (Globo). 11 May 2021, https://g1.globo.com/rj/rio-de-janeiro/noticia/2021/05/11/reacao-da-policia-depende-da-acao-do-criminoso-diz-secretario-de-policia-civil-sobre-acao-no-jacarezinho.ghtml:

O secretário de Polícia Civil, Allan Turnowski, afirmou que o resultado da operação no Jacarezinho, que terminou com 28 mortes na última quinta-feira (6), ocorreu porque criminosos atiraram contra os policiais e os confrontos foram intensos. 

"A reação da polícia depende da ação do criminoso. Traficantes atiravam para matar policiais. No início da operação, balearam um policial na cabeça. Conseguimos entrar no Jacarezinho, isso levou ao encontro desses traficantes, e ali o confronto se intensificou", disse em entrevista ao RJ1.

Turnowski afirmou que a polícia vai colaborar com as investigações do Ministério Público. O MPRJ anunciou uma força-tarefa para investigar a operação nesta terça-feira (11).[1]

Key Information: “MPRJ cria força-tarefa para investigar operação no Jacarezinho.” ISTOÉ. 11 May 2021, https://istoe.com.br/mprj-cria-forca-tarefa-para-investigar-operacao-no-jacarezinho/:

O Ministério Público do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ) anunciou hoje (11) a criação de uma força-tarefa para investigar a operação na comunidade do Jacarezinho, na zona norte da capital fluminense, que terminou com 28 mortos, entre eles um policial civil. A ação ocorreu na última quinta-feira (6) e foi a mais letal na história do estado…

…A Procuradoria foi informada da ação às 9h da última quinta-feira. A justificativa da Polícia Civil ao MPRJ para a realização da operação era para dar cumprimento a mandados judiciais de prisão preventiva e buscas e apreensão no interior da comunidade dominada por facção criminosa.

“Importante esclarecer que a realização de operações policiais não requer prévia autorização ou anuência por parte do Ministério Público, mas sim a comunicação de sua realização e justificativa em atendimento aos comandos expressos do Supremo Tribunal Federal, a partir do julgamento da ADPF [Arguição de Descumprimento de Preceito Fundamental] 635-RJ”, informou o órgão.[2]

Key Information: “Rio Prosecutor’s Office, pressured by public opinion, creates task force on Jacarezinho massacre.” The Rio Times. 12 May 2021, https://riotimesonline.com/brazil-news/rio-de-janeiro/rio-prosecutors-office-creates-task-force-on-jacarezinho-massacre-pressured-by-public-opinion-and-human-rights-groups/:

Under pressure from public opinion and human rights organizations, the Rio de Janeiro Prosecutor’s Office (MP) [Ministério Público], which is constitutionally responsible for the external control of police operations, announced the creation of a task force to investigate the massacre…

…The group will run for four months, which may be extended, and will investigate reports of police executions and abuse, the death of officer André Frias and the attempted murder of five other officers, two attempted murders of subway passengers, and any irregularities in the removal of bodies.

The task force will be headed by prosecutor André Cardoso and will be supported by three other officials -Flávia Maria de Moura Machado, Jorge Luis Furquim and Matheus Picanço-, and by other MP’s internal structures.

Key Information: Tatiana Lima, “Stop Killing Us! Jacarezinho Experiences Worst Massacre in Rio History #VoicesFromSocialMedia.” RioOnWatch. 8 May 2021, https://rioonwatch.org/?p=65697:

It’s May 6, 2021 in Rio de Janeiro. Teams from the Civil Police’s Special Resources Coordination (CORE) start a police operation in the Jacarezinho favela, in the North Zone. It was nine in the morning when the Jacarezinho Audiovisual Lab (LabJaca), informed: “Today Jacarezinho woke up under gunfire, like we hadn’t in a long time. Three people have been shot until now, a civil policeman and two workers who were on the metro.” LabJaca requests: “Residents, stay tuned! Our safety comes first!” Through social media, residents of the community reported: “We are stuck inside our homes, unable to breathe with the pepper bombs, with no way of getting out,” while an armored helicopter—known as the “flying caveirão,” an air version of the civil police’s armored trucks—flies over a sea of brick homes. It was the onset of the Exceptis Operation.

According to the Civil Police, the Exceptis Operation took place due to investigations that pointed to children and teenagers in the region being recruited by the drug traffic to join the faction that dominates the territory…

…29 people were shot during Jacarezinho’s police operation, among which were three civil policemen, with 25 of them being killed: 24 civilians and one policeman in the most lethal incursion of state security agents to have occurred in the history of Rio de Janeiro, according to survey from the Fluminense Federal University’s (UFF) Group of Studies on the New Illegalities (Geni) and platform Fogo Cruzado. The operation lasted over seven hours…

……Operation Exceptis happened three weeks after the public hearing held by the Brazilian Supreme Court (STF), regarding ADPF 635, which aims to produce strategies to reduce the lethality in favelas during police operations in Rio de Janeiro. At the April 19 hearing, more than 100 organizations were consulted, including residents belonging to favela grassroots movements and mothers of victims of State violence—who were heard as “friends of the court”—besides human rights entities and public security specialists, with the Fogo Cruzado Institute among them.[3]

Key Information: Bárbara Carvalho, Bete Pacheco e Octávio Guedes, “Defensoria Pública do RJ diz que antecedente criminal não pode ser justificativa para grande número de mortes no Jacarezinho.” G1 (Globo).12 May 2021, https://g1.globo.com/rj/rio-de-janeiro/noticia/2021/05/12/defensoria-publica-do-rj-diz-que-antecedente-criminal-nao-pode-ser-justificativa-para-grande-numero-de-mortes-no-jacarezinho.ghtml:

O defensor público geral do estado do Rio, Rodrigo Pacheco, disse nesta quarta-feira (12) que ter antecedente criminal não pode justificativa para grande número de mortes no Jacarezinho, na Zona Norte do Rio. O operação na comunidade deixou 28 mortos, entre eles o policial civil André Farias, de 48 anos, e foi considerada a mais letal da história no estado.[4][5]

Key Information: Terrence McCoy, “Rio police were ordered to limit favela raids during the pandemic. They’re still killing hundreds of people.” Washington Post. 20 May 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/05/20/brazil-police-rio-jacarezinho-favela-raid/:

In June 2020, the Brazilian supreme court ordered Rio de Janeiro police to drastically restrict police raids that had come to resemble engagements of war. Police, encouraged by right-wing politicians who had won elections by calling for harsher tactics against criminal gangs, had in recent years sent armored cars, snipers and bulletproof helicopters into the favelas — and killed an astonishing number of people. In a state with a population of 16 million, police fatally shot 1,814 people in 2019 alone, according to government statistics, 80 percent more than police killed that year in all of the United States.

Last year, as an even deadlier force bore down on Brazil — a virus that has killed more people here than in any country outside the United States — the court told Rio police they could storm into gang strongholds only under “absolutely exceptional” circumstances. During the pandemic, they were to adopt “exceptional safeguards” to avoid “putting more of the population at risk.”

But in a country where right-wing officials increasingly clash with judges — where nationalist President Jair Bolsonaro has fanned calls to disband the supreme court — the order has failed to rein in police. In the first three months of 2021, as Brazil tipped into the darkest days of its outbreak, the police killed 453 people — a record for that period — in an urban onslaught that culminated with this month’s carnage in Jacarezinho.

Third Generation Gangs Analysis

Rio de Janeiro’s deadliest police action occurred on 6 May 2021 and continued for over 9 hours.[6] The incident against members of the Comando Vermelho (CV or Red Command)—Operação Exceptis(Operation Exception)—left at least 28 dead (1 police officer and 27 residents).[7]

According to a Washington Post report, a police officer was the first to die in the confrontation.  At 0600 hours (6 AM), the civil police were met with small arms fire when they hit upon concrete barricades at favela’s entrance.  Officer André Leonardo was shot in the head and mortally wounded.  Another officer was also hit.[8] A series of shootouts throughout Jacarezinho followed:

Near an acrid canal that borders the community, eight people were killed in one shootout. Six more were gunned down at 10 a.m. In all, the police killed people in 10 locations. In claustrophobic alleys. On rooftops. Eight people inside houses. One person was shot and killed in the bedroom of an 8-year-old girl.[9]

The deadly raid follows a June 220 injunction banning police operations in Rio’s favelas for the duration of the Covid-19 pandemic.  The ruling by Justice Edson Fanchin mandated that any exception to the ruling requires notification to the public prosecutor’s office.[10]  In the aftermath of the deadly raid, there has been a sustained global call for independent review of the incident.[11]  Indeed, Justice Edson, the judge that authorized the anti-raid injunction in Brazil’s Supreme Court (Supremo Tribunal Federal – STF), criticized the operations stating there were “indications of arbitrary execution,” meaning extrajudicial killing.[12]

Rio’s police raids have long been a source of controversy. On one side, there is criticism of heavy-handed, police tactics that are viewed by many as brutal and arbitrary or indiscriminate:

A police raid in the Jacarezinho favela of Rio de Janeiro killed 27 Brazilians, prompting a demand from Brazil’s Supreme Court and U.N. human rights officials for an investigation into the use of police force. Jacarezinho is a stronghold of one of Brazil’s most powerful drug trafficking gangs, the Red Command (Comando Vermelho, or CV). It is also home to thousands of lower-income Black and brown residents not affiliated with the gang.[13]

 On the other side, there is a perception among those seeking order that:

“They’re all criminals,” Hamilton Mourão, right-wing vice president and former army general, said in a news conference after the massacre. “[Criminal territorial control is] a serious problem in the city of Rio de Janeiro that we will have to resolve someday or the other.”[14]

Bridging the gap in perceptions is a critical need in enhancing public security in Brazils’ contested favelas.  Of course, that balance requires a political solution grounded in research on many fronts and levels.  For some, the perception is that aggressive police action contributes to the high levels of violence; others feel the violence is politically motivated to benefit police militias:

Experts have already begun making predictions about future criminal conflict in Jacarezinho. Some predict that the raids were political, deliberately weakening the Red Command drug trafficking gang so that protection racket-style militias—potentially including groups that support Brazil’s president—find inroads in the community.[15]

The ground truth is likely somewhere between these positions.  There is evidence that territorial gangs challenge the state and additional evidence that police militias are part of the competition for power and territorial control.  While the extent of the multi-lateral competition for control (including control of illicit markets for drugs and extortion) demands additional analysis, it is clear that the competition for power (criminal and otherwise), includes competition among various territorial gangs (gangues territoriais), militias (milícias), the state, and various political factions.[16]

The first step to gaining this understanding is an independent assessment of the events that took place during Operação Exceptis (Operation Exception) on 6 May 2021. This should include a tactical after action assessment and independent inquiry to determine violations of law and invoke disciplinary action as necessary.[17][18] In addition to these inquiries into the incident and the legal, public safety and security considerations of community policing, a broader inquiry is needed to assess the legal and policy frameworksfor addressing the competition between the state and criminal armed groups (CAGs)—including territorial gangs and militias.  This competition involves a high level of violence on all sides. Determining the appropriate legal regimes to address these situations that essentially amount to ‘criminal insurgencies’ or‘crime wars’ is needed.[19]

Sources

“Brazil: At least 25 killed in Rio de Janeiro shootout.” BBC News. 6 May 2021, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-57013206.

Bárbara Carvalho, Bete Pacheco e Octávio Guedes, “Defensoria Pública do RJ diz que antecedente criminal não pode ser justificativa para grande número de mortes no Jacarezinho.” G1 (Globo). 12 May 2021, https://g1.globo.com/rj/rio-de-janeiro/noticia/2021/05/12/defensoria-publica-do-rj-diz-que-antecedente-criminal-nao-pode-ser-justificativa-para-grande-numero-de-mortes-no-jacarezinho.ghtml.

Tatiana Lima, “Stop Killing Us! Jacarezinho Experiences Worst Massacre in Rio History #VoicesFromSocialMedia.” RioOnWatch. 8 May 2021, https://rioonwatch.org/?p=65697.

“Lista de mortos no Jacarezinho: 25 tinham ficha criminal e há provas contra os outros 2, diz polícia.” G1 (Globo). 8 May 2021, https://g1.globo.com/rj/rio-de-janeiro/noticia/2021/05/08/veja-a-lista-de-mortos-na-operacao-do-jacarezinho.ghtml.

Flávia Milhorance and Ernesto Londoño, “Police Operation in Rio de Janeiro Leaves at Least 25 Dead.” New York Times. 6 May 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/06/world/americas/brazil-rio-police-shootout.html.

“Rio Prosecutor’s Office, pressured by public opinion, creates task force on Jacarezinho massacre.” The Rio Times. 12 May 2021, https://riotimesonline.com/brazil-news/rio-de-janeiro/rio-prosecutors-office-creates-task-force-on-jacarezinho-massacre-pressured-by-public-opinion-and-human-rights-groups/.

“Stop Killing Us! Jacarezinho Experiences Worst Massacre in Rio History #VoicesFromSocialMedia.” RioOnWatch. 8 May 2021, https://rioonwatch.org/?p=65697.

Paulo Renato Soares and Elis Silvestri, “'Reação da polícia depende da ação do criminoso', diz secretário de Polícia Civil sobre ação no Jacarezinho. G1 (Globo). 11 May 2021, https://g1.globo.com/rj/rio-de-janeiro/noticia/2021/05/11/reacao-da-policia-depende-da-acao-do-criminoso-diz-secretario-de-policia-civil-sobre-acao-no-jacarezinho.ghtml.

Terrence McCoy, “Rio police were ordered to limit favela raids during the pandemic. They’re still killing hundreds of people.” Washington Post. 20 May 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/05/20/brazil-police-rio-jacarezinho-favela-raid/.

Endnotes

[1] In English, the title reads: “‘Police reaction depends on criminal action’, says Civil Police secretary about action in Jacarezinho.” The text reads: “Civil Police Secretary Allan Turnowski said that the result of the operation in Jacarezinho, which ended with 28 deaths last Thursday (6), occurred because criminals shot at the police and the confrontations were intense.” … “‘The police's reaction depends on the criminal’s action. Traffickers fired to kill policemen. At the beginning of the operation, they shot a policeman in the head. We managed to get into Jacarezinho, this led to the meeting of these traffickers, and there the confrontation intensified,’ he said in interview with RJ1.” … “Turnowski said the police will collaborate with the prosecutor’s investigations. The MPRJ [Ministério Público do Estado do Rio de Janeiro] announced a task force to investigate the operation on Tuesday (11).”

[2] In English, the title reads: “MPRJ [Ministério Público do Estado do Rio de Janeiro] creates task force to investigate operation in Jacarezinho.”   The text reads: “Today (11) the Public Ministry of the State of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ) announced the creation of a task force to investigate the operation in the Jacarezinho community, in the northern area of ​​the capital of Rio de Janeiro, which ended with 28 dead, including a civil police officer. The action took place last Thursday (6) and was the most lethal in the history of the state.” … “The Prosecutor's Office was informed of the action at 9am last Thursday [6 May 2021]. The justification of the Civil Police to the MPRJ for carrying out the operation was to comply with preventive arrest warrants and searches and apprehension within the community dominated by a criminal faction.” … “According to the agency, It is important to clarify that the conduct of police operations does not require prior authorization or consent by the Public Prosecutor’s Office; but rather the communication of its realization and justification in response to the express commands of the Supreme Federal Court, based on the judgment of the ADPF [Arguição de Noncomprimento—or injunction—of Fundamental Precept] 635-RJ.”

[3] This article is available in Portuguese: Tatiana Lima, “Parem de Nos Matar! Jacarezinho Sofre a Maior Chacina da Cidade do Rio #OQueDizemAsRedes.” RioOnWatch. 7 May 2012, https://rioonwatch.org.br/?p=54976.

[4] In English, the title reads: “Public Defender of RJ says criminal record cannot be justification for large number of deaths in Jacarezinho.” The text reads: “he general public defender of the state of Rio, Rodrigo Pacheco, said on Wednesday (12) that having a criminal record cannot justify the large number of deaths in Jacarezinho, in the North Zone of Rio. The operation in the community left 28 dead, among them civil police officer André Farias, 48, and was considered the most lethal in history in the state.”

[5] A list of the 28 persons killed in the operation is available at “Lista de mortos no Jacarezinho: 25 tinham ficha criminal e há provas contra os outros 2, diz polícia [List of dead in Jacarezinho: 25 had criminal records and there is evidence against the other 2, says police].” G1 (Globo). 6 May 2021, https://especiais.g1.globo.com/2021/rj/operacao_jacarezinho/?_ga=2.163795709.35396076.1621814903-1813380030.1596327754.

[6] See “9 horas de terror no Jacarezinho: Operação policial mais letal da história do RJ causa 28 mortes [9 hours of terror in Jacarezinho: Most lethal police operation in the history of RJ causes 28 deaths].”

[7] Terrence McCoy, “Rio police were ordered to limit favela raids during the pandemic. They’re still killing hundreds of people.” Washington Post. 20 May 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/05/20/brazil-police-rio-jacarezinho-favela-raid/.

[8] Ibid.

[9] Ibid.

[10] See “Why the Supreme Court suspend police operations in favelas of Rio de Janeiro.” Conectas. 29 June 2020, https://www.conectas.org/en/noticias/understand-what-led-the-supreme-court-to-suspend-police-operations-in-rio-de-janeiros-favelas/.  The injunction is part of a lawsuit, the ADPF (Allegation of Violation of a Fundamental Precept) Case No. 635, known as the “ADPF Favelas Case.” The lawsuit proposed by the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB) and jointly drafted by the Public Defender’s Office of the State of Rio de Janeiro and the organizations Educafro, Justiça Global, Redes da Maré, Conectas Direitos Humanos, Movimento Negro Unificado, Iser, IDMJR, Coletivo Papo Reto, Coletivo Fala Akari, Rede de Comunidades and Movimento contra a Violência, Mães de Manguinhos. The injunction is available at http://www.stf.jus.br/arquivo/cms/noticiaNoticiaStf/anexo/ADPF635DECISaO5DEJUNHODE20202.pdf and case details are available at http://portal.stf.jus.br/processos/detalhe.asp?incidente=5816502.

[11] See Débora Álvares, “Top judges in Brazil want review after deadly police raid.” Associate Press. 9 May 2021, https://apnews.com/article/brazil-health-coronavirus-pandemic-87b72f780b9b29818ff13d9975f1d75d. For additional details on the criticism from Brazilian civil society organizations, see Andrew Fishman, “VIDEO: DEADLIEST POLICE RAID IN RIO DE JANEIRO HISTORY KILLS AT LEAST 28.” The Intercept. 8 May 2021, https://theintercept.com/2021/05/08/brazil-police-massacre-rio-jacarezinho/.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Jessie Bullock, “Brazilian police killed 27 people in a single raid this month. That doesn’t make Rio de Janeiro safer.” Washington Post. 17 May 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/05/17/brazilian-police-killed-27-people-single-raid-this-month-that-doesnt-make-rio-de-janeiro-safer/.

[14] Ibid.

[15] Ibid. 

[16] See John P. Sullivan, José de Arimatéia da Cruz, and Robert J. Bunker, “Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 32: Militias (Milícias) Surpass Gangs (Gangues) in Territorial Control in Rio de Janeiro.” Small Wars Journal. 26 October 2020, https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/third-generation-gangs-strategic-note-no-32-militias-milicias-surpass-gangs-gangues.

[17] See Robert Muggah, “Rio’s bloody police campaign. Small Wars Journal. 7 May 2021, https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/rios-bloody-police-campaign.

[18] See “Recommendations for Improving Forensic Analysis and Investigations into Police Killings in Rio de Janeiro.” Human Rights Watch. 19 April 2021, https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/05/20/recommendations-improving-forensic-analysis-and-investigations-police-killings-rio#.

[19] See Robert Muggah and John P. Sullivan, “The Coming Crime Wars.” Foreign Policy. 21 September 2018, https://foreignpolicy.com/2018/09/21/the-coming-crime-wars/ and “Do the Laws of Armed Conflict Apply to Drug-Related Violence?” International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy. University of Essex. No Date, https://www.hr-dp.org/contents/206#.Xao2L-X4kjE.twitter.

For Additional Reading

On Rio de Janeiro

Robert Muggah, “Rio’s bloody police campaign.” Small Wars Journal. 7 May 2021.

John P. Sullivan, José de Arimatéia da Cruz, and Robert J. Bunker, “José de Arimatéia da Cruz, and Robert J. Bunker, “Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 33: Brazilian Gangs (Quadrilhas) Wage Urban Bank Raids in a New ‘Cangaço’’.” Small Wars Journal. 2 December 2020.

John P. Sullivan, José de Arimatéia da Cruz, and Robert J. Bunker, “Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 32: Militias (Milícias) Surpass Gangs (Gangues) in Territorial Control in Rio de Janeiro.” Small Wars Journal. 26 October 2020. 

Matthew Aaron Richmond, “The Pacification of Brazil’s Urban Margins: How Police and Traffickers Co-produce Insecurity” Small Wars Journal. 16 November 2019.

John P. Sullivan, José de Arimatéia da Cruz, and Robert J. Bunker, “Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 10: Military Takes Control of Policing in Rio de Janeiro.” Small Wars Journal. 24 February 2018.

Christian Vianna de Azevedo, “Criminal Insurgency in Brazil: “The Case of Rio de Janeiro: Context, Confrontation Issues and Implications for Brazilian Public Security.” Small Wars Journal. 22 January 2018.

Claudio Ramos da Cruz and David H. Ucko, “Beyond the Unidades de Polícia Pacificadora: Countering Comando Vermelho’s Criminal Insurgency.” Small Wars & Insurgencies. Vol. 29, no. 1, 2018, pp. 38-67.

Jan Daniel, “Criminal Governance and Insurgency: The Rio de Janeiro Experience.” Central European Journal of International and Security Studies (CEJISS).  Vol. 9, no. 4, 4 December 2015.

On Underlying Concepts

Carlos Frederico De Oliveira Pereira, “Gray Zones and Crime Suppression: Between International Human Rights Law and International Law of Armed Conflicts.” Small Wars Journal. 2 May 2020.

John P. Sullivan, “TThe Challenges of Territorial Gangs: Civil Strife, Criminal Insurgencies and Crime Wars.” Revista do Ministério Público Militar (Brazil), Edição n. 31, November 2019.

Robert Muggah and John P. Sullivan, “The Coming Crime Wars.” Foreign Policy. 21 September 2018.

Carlos Frederico de Oliveira Pereira, Gangues Territorias e Direito International dos Conflitos Armadas.. Curitiba: Juruá Editora, 2016.