San Joao de Meriti city councilor Marcos Enrique Matos de Aquino (Republican) was not a target of the containment operation targeting the expansion of Comando Vermelho in the city. However, police officers visiting the home of Luis Aquino, the brother of the lawmaker targeted in the investigation, encountered the politician using a .380 pistol without registering it with the National Weapons System (SINAM), leading to his arrest. Along with him, boxes of medical supplies were also confiscated and loaded into a pickup truck driven by the city councilor who received the most votes in the city in the 2024 election.
- Operations on CVs: Sant Joan de Meriti city councilor arrested. The younger brother of a member of parliament is also one of the targets.
The list of drugs includes antidepressants, antipsychotics, arrhythmics, anti-inflammatory drugs, and acute pain drugs. The products are being analyzed by police officers from Cidade da Policía, where Marcos Aquino was taken.
Meanwhile, Luis Aquino was never found by investigators.
- in the forest areaduring a large-scale operation, police officers experienced a scene of horror after dark: “Hell.” You won’t get out alive,” the agent said.
His profile on the city’s City Council highlights that he was the city’s most popular councilor in 2024. “Marquinho is a biological son of São João de Meriti, the city in which he was born, grew up and chose to build his life,” the profile reads, indicating that he is a former member of the Army, a unit in which he served for eight years.
On Instagram, the social network where he has 12,000 followers, the lawmaker shared his tours around the city wearing an orange vest with his name on it. One post even asked the public for “help” in reporting “lack of food, lack of doctors, problems with schools and health facilities.”
Mr. Aquino, who won his first candidacy, declared assets of 1,064,000 reais, including 1 million reais worth of shares in a food supply company based in Belford Roxo and a sedan model car worth 64,000 reais.