Position comes after the governor of Rio de Janeiro said that the State faces organized crime ‘alone’, since federal forces, according to him, do not help him
The Minister of Justice, this Tuesday (28), refuted the statements made by the governor of , about an alleged rejection of aid to the Rio State. “I did not receive any request from the governor of Rio de Janeiro, as Minister of Justice and Public Security, for this operation, not yesterday, not today, absolutely nothing”, he said in a ceremony at the Legislative Assembly of Ceará, where he will receive the title of Citizen of Ceará. The position comes after Castro said, after the operation against the Red Command (CV) that left at least 64 dead, Rio de Janeiro faces organized crime “alone”, since federal forces, according to him, do not help it.
“Our police alone. It’s a bigger operation than in 2010 and, unfortunately, this time, as throughout this entire mandate, we don’t have the help of armored vehicles, nor any agent from the federal forces, nor security, nor defense. We alone in this fight, we are carrying out the biggest operation in the history of Rio de Janeiro”, stated Castro, adding that this time he did not ask for help because he had three denials.
“We already understand that the policy is not to give in. They say that there has to be a GLO (Guarantee of Order Law), that there has to be this, that there has to be that, that they could lend the armored vehicle and then they could no longer lend it because the employee who operates the armored vehicle is a federal employee. The president has already said that he is against GLO. We understand that the reality is this and we are not going to keep crying in corners”, stated Castro.
Asked about the operation in Rio, Lewandowski said: “The fight against crime, whether common or organized, is done with planning, intelligence, coordination of forces. Ultimately, I cannot judge because I am not in the governor’s chair, but I want to show my solidarity with the families of the dead police officers, my solidarity with the families of the innocent people who also perished in this operation and make myself available for any assistance that is necessary”, continued the minister.
In a statement, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP) stated that it has responded “promptly to all requests” to send the National Force to the State, and listed a series of measures taken between the federal government and Rio de Janeiro, such as integrated operations, investments and agent support. The note also adds that, since 2023, the first year of the current term of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), all 11 requests for renewal of the National Force in the territory of Rio de Janeiro have been accepted.
The ministry, headed by Ricardo Lewandowski, also mentions 178 Federal Police operations in Rio de Janeiro in 2025, with 210 arrests made and the seizure of 10 tons of drugs and 190 firearms; 855 arrest warrants served between 2024 and 2025; and tens of thousands of objects seized by the Federal Highway Police since 2023, from vehicles to weapons, ammunition and drugs.
The note provokes Castro by saying that the National Penitentiary Fund transferred more than R$99 million to the State between 2016 and 2024, of which “only around R$39 million were actually used, with more than R$104 million still remaining in the account”. It also mentions an unused balance of R$174 million from transfers from the National Public Security Fund.
Among the cooperation agreements signed between the two administrations, the MJSP mentions the integration of the State into the National Network of Specialized Units for Combating Criminal Organizations (Renorcrim) and the National Network for the Recovery of Assets of Criminal Factions (Recupera), a technical cooperation agreement for the creation of the Integrated Cell for the Location and Capture of Outlaws, and another for the creation of the Financial Intelligence and Asset Recovery Committee (CIFRA).
“Also, on February 5th of this year, the governor of Rio de Janeiro, Cláudio Castro, was at the Ministry of Justice and Public Security for a meeting with minister Ricardo Lewandowski. On that occasion, the minister responded to a request from the State and offered ten places in federal prisons to allocate criminal leaders from Rio de Janeiro”, informed the ministry.
Earlier, the Secretary of Public Security of Rio de Janeiro, Victor Santos, said in an interview with TV Globo that his State is unable to face organized crime alone. He stated that the government requested federal assistance in a previous operation against the CV, but was denied.
“There are approximately 9 million square meters of disorder. Houses built irregularly, alleys that are impossible to patrol. This causes greater risk to the population and obviously to the police. These criminals dominated this region. Today, for example, they used drones launching explosive devices against the police and the population. This is the reality, this state of war that we live in in Rio de Janeiro”, said Santos.
The secretary stated that “no one can do anything alone” and that there are almost 1900 favelas in Rio de Janeiro, in the fourth smallest state, but the third most populous. “Six hundred rifles seized from the hands of criminals. It is a very bad diagnosis for Rio de Janeiro. And the State has been playing this combat role alone for years. It is important, yes, that the State, the city hall and the Union sit at the table, without ideology”, he declared.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
