It launched an operation in Goiás to dismantle a criminal organization that worked in international drug trafficking. This group is accused of causing significant damage to the Federal Government’s Popular Pharmacy Program, using pharmaceutical companies, some of them fictional, to obtain illicit benefits. More than one hundred court orders were executed during the operation, which included arrest warrants and search and seizure.
In addition, the action resulted in the blockade of R $ 39 million and the kidnapping of property related to the scheme. The operations extended by Goiás, Federal District, Paraíba, Mato Grosso, Acre and Minas Gerais. The investigation began in 2022, when two suspects were arrested with cocaine. From this arrest, the researchers found that the gang was also involved in fraud against the Popular Pharmacy program, using at least 28 companies to perform the irregularities.
These companies, which were registered in the program, underwent corporate changes and increased the volume of drug launches, often without delivering the products to beneficiaries. The monthly transfers of the Popular Pharmacy, which initially were up to R $ 5,000, jumped to values between R $ 60 thousand and R $ 90 thousand per pharmacy after the start of the frauds. This increase in the values raised suspicions and led to the investigation deeper into the activities of the criminal group.
*Report produced with the aid of AI
Posted by Fernando Dias
