The Secretary of Security of Ribeirão Pires (SP), Sandro Torres Amante, resigned from office on Wednesday (23), a week after the revelation that he was for involvement in theft to butchers in the city of Greater São Paulo, in 2018. The letter of dismissal was filed on Thursday (24), in which lover claims to be innocent and says he leaves the position to ‘preserve the image of the Municipal Guard.
The resignation was even after Mayor Guto Volpi (PL) initially declared confidence in the secretary. With the departure, the folder will be commanded by Arlei Capoccio, a civil guard since 2022. The city had already removed the then-chief inspector of GCM, Filipe Murilo Silva, who was replaced by Fernando Belchior Dias, former supporter of the corporation.
Conviction
The crime occurred at dawn on June 18, 2018, when Sandro was a deputy commander of the Municipal Civil Guard. According to the Public Prosecution Service, he and two other men – Gutembergu Martins Silva and Marcelo Cruz Dallavali – invaded two butchers in the city center, located a few meters from each other, and took R $ 28,000 in kind and 57 kg of meat, as well as equipment such as security cameras and coffers.
Surveillance images, replaced by the framing by an employee returning from the break, caught the accused by dividing the stolen goods. Before the action, the cameras had been purposely redirected out of the field of view. The investigation also identified that the suspects created a false complaint to mobilize the staff of GCM and PM to another point of the city, facilitating the crime.
The court ordered the loss of public office of Sandro and Gutemberg, but both appeal the decision at the Superior Court of Justice (STJ).
Suspected militia and extortion
Accusations against lover are not limited to theft. The prosecutor pointed out that he would be part of a militia made up of GCM members, who would have acted between 2019 and 2023, committing extortion, theft and corruption.
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According to Gaeco (Special Action Group to Combat Organized Crime), the group used the GCM structure to cover up crimes, move security cameras from the city and intimidate local traders. In sensitive testimonials, witnesses reported that agents offered protection to businessmen in the city – to prevent them from becoming targets of the group.
Although the court has rejected the complaint by militia organization, investigations remain underway. The MP also investigates whether Sandro would have received a bribe from traffickers on other occasions, based on new evidence presented by complaints.
Meanwhile, Gutembergu Martins Silva, also convicted in the case of theft, remains as a civil guard and continues to receive salary, even away from his duties.
