According to the state governor, Cláudio Castro, he is “Rio’s number one enemy”. There are at least twelve warrants for his arrest. It is said that he handed himself in the night after Christmas Eve, after negotiations between his lawyers, the Federal Police and the state Public Security Secretariat.
“This is another important result of the serious and systematic work carried out in Rio de Janeiro and other states to combat criminal organizations,” said Brazilian Justice Minister Flávio Dino, according to state news agency Agência Brasil.
Militias consist of, among other things, active and former police officers who are involved in drug trafficking and protection rackets. They decide who gets electricity, gas and running water in the regions they control. Zinho's crime syndicate mainly dominates the west zone of Rio.
At least 35 buses and a train were set on fire there in October, after the militia chief's nephew and right-hand man was killed by police. The violence led to the closure of schools and the halt of traffic in many places. The police assume that the burning buses were an act of revenge by the militia.