The Brazilian Army has restructured the chain of command of one of its most sensitive units: the Psychological Operations Battalion, known for housing members of the group nicknamed “Black Kids”-investigated by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) and the Federal Police, involving former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
The change was officialized through an ordinance signed by the army commander, General Tomás Paiva, who removed the Goiania unit, where he operated under the special operations command, transferring it to the Military Command of Planalto in Brasilia.
With the change, the group loses strategic autonomy. According to the high command assessment, released by the G1It made no sense to maintain a structure of national influence subordinate to a specific tactical command.

“It is a unit that serves the entire army, cannot be available to a group that, by its nature, can be tempted to use it for its own benefit,” an active general told anonymity to the portal.
The Psychological Operations Battalion acts to “influence emotions, attitudes and opinions with a view to obtaining predetermined behaviors”, according to the official definition of the force.
The unit gained prominence during the mission in Haiti and federal intervention in Rio de Janeiro, when it helped create a favorable environment for military presence.
Continues after advertising
The suspicion is that part of the troops acted to incite coup manifestations that culminated in the invasion of the three powers on January 8, 2023.
The Federal Police intercepted officers’ audios discussing how to perform a “good work” regarding the occupation of the National Congress.
Among those reported by the Supreme Court is Lieutenant Colonel Guilherme Marques Almeida, former battalion commander and cited directly in the investigations.
Continues after advertising
Another central name in the plot is the reserve colonel Reginaldo Vieira, mentor of the systematic use of psychological war in the Armed Forces, named as one of the most radical among the “black kids”.
Formed within the Special Operations Command, the “black kids” cultivated the elite image within the troop, which generated discomfort in other sectors of the military hierarchy. The most common analogy is with Bope, which operates autonomously and with its own prestige within the state military police.