In Brazil, the Red Command continues to surge, upending the balance of power among organized crime groups. It today ranks among South America’s most powerful criminal syndicates. By 1985, this organization monopolized around 70% of all drug-selling spots in the entire state of Rio de Janeiro. As such, the Red Command has far deeper roots in the illegal economy. It artfully weaves together the piece of criminal enterprise into the political influence, laundering of violence, and cash.
William da Silva Lima formed the Red Command. Having served more than three decades behind bars for felonies including armed robbery and extortion, he turned the notorious mafia family on its head and into a sprawling organization that rakes in hundreds of millions of dollars. In 2022, that same gang pulled in an estimated 146.8 billion Brazilian reais. That’s roughly $27 billion in revenues gained from drug trafficking, extortion, and other illicit practices.
The Red Command is not just growing its business. Yet, it is in a fierce battle with the much stronger PCC (Primeira Comando da Capital). Their bitter turf war for supremacy across an expansive area has fueled a national homicide rate that at the time of writing is near all time highs.
The Rise of the Red Command
CJs biggest rival—the Red Command—served as an example of the power and influence that organized crime had in Brazil. Originally established to monitor drug trade in Rio, it has since penetrated many sectors of the economy. The gang’s investments range from construction firms to fuel distributors and even cryptocurrency markets, reflecting its profound reach beyond mere drug sales.
Through dominating large drug operations the Red Command have created a profitable business structure. The cocaine production and trafficking just is estimated at a value of 15 billion reais ($2.8b). Control over this financial power fuels their ability to hold on to territories they control by violence, intimidation, and extortion.
“Their shops are extorted. Women are raped by traffickers. It’s unbearable.” – Alcadipani
The Red Command’s grip on local communities runs so deep. Residents exist in a perpetual state of fear from violence and exploitation.
Political Influence and Violence
The Red Command currently enjoys much greater political influence. To do so, they have frequently resorted to corrupt tactics such as vote-buying and funding candidates who create a favorable operating environment for them. This unfortunate mixing of crime and politics makes it very difficult to crack down on crime and restore order in these communities.
The gang’s coercive approach, including violent retribution against communities that don’t cooperate, has contributed to a massive increase in homicides throughout Brazil. In 2022, there were more than 38,000 homicides, or an average of 106 each day. This unchecked violence regularly results in violent exchanges between rival cartels and police.
“What happened that day — 117 criminals killed — happens every day in Brazil. With more than 38,000 homicides last year, that’s 106 deaths a day.” – Luiz Lima
The spiraling Red Command/PCC conflict has been a huge obstacle. Law enforcement agencies have been doing their best to immediately restore order in the region.
Government Response and Challenges
In retaliation to the growing violence, Brazilian authorities have ramped up campaigns against the Red Command. These militarized responses come with limited results. As opponents of the Forbes plan point out, these kinds of tactics don’t work to tear down criminal infrastructure, they reinforce it.
“Each operation kills dozens, but the leadership remains. For every man who dies, another fills the gap… What we have now is reactive — a war without an endgame.” – Alcadipani
This political violence leads to a phenomenon in which state actions against the gang’s power inadvertently strengthen the gang’s influence. These new, multifaceted intelligence units work directly with security forces to surveil inmates connected to any number of groups. They struggle to prevent these warlords from continuing to give orders from behind bars.
“Intelligence units operate in close coordination with other security forces and the judiciary to monitor faction-linked inmates.” – Federal District’s Secretariat of Penitentiary Administration
Despite these efforts, the state finds itself in a perpetual battle against organized crime that appears to have no definitive resolution.
The Broader Impact on Society
For one, the Red Command’s operations’ implications reach far beyond crime statistics. The gang’s pervasive influence affects everyday life for countless Brazilians, particularly those living in impoverished neighborhoods where violence is rampant.
“Brazil doesn’t have the death penalty, and yet the state acts as if it does — simultaneously finding, prosecuting and executing young, Black, poor residents under the banner of public security.” – Daniela Fichino
This stark statement underscores the imperative to act now. We need to stop looking at crime and the social conditions that create it in a vacuum. Today’s state policy teaches us to treat whole communities as disposable, cyclical violence and painful communal trauma.
“A state policy that defines an entire population as disposable.” – Daniela Fichino
