A new and dangerous front has opened in Rio de Janeiro's battle against organized crime, with criminal factions and militias now waging a violent turf war over control of the city's internet infrastructure. According to police and state security officials, these groups are no longer focused solely on the drug trade. Instead, they are aggressively expanding into the control of essential services, viewing territorial dominance as a more lucrative and sustainable business model.
The conflict has turned Rio's utility poles into strategic battlegrounds. Criminal organizations are systematically stealing electricity to power their operations and are laying down their own clandestine cable networks. This allows them to establish themselves as the sole internet providers in the communities they dominate, creating illegal local monopolies. The state's Subsecretary of Intelligence, Pablo Sartori, confirmed that this model of control is now more profitable for gangs than drug trafficking itself, given that nearly every resident depends on internet access.
The tactics used to secure this control are brutal and direct. Investigations reveal that criminals have resorted to arson, setting fire to legitimate shops that offer competing services. They have also been caught on camera physically cutting the fiber-optic cables of rival providers. Employees of major delivery companies have reported being threatened at gunpoint by armed men, who demand weekly 'toll' payments of up to R$800 per business to allow deliveries into these areas. Failure to pay results in threats of robbery, vehicle destruction, and the seizure of goods.
This criminal stranglehold extends far beyond internet access. Residents in dominated neighborhoods like Muzema and Rio das Pedras report that the sale of basic goods—from bottled water and charcoal to even simple items like brooms—is now controlled by the gangs. Only shops authorized by the criminals can sell certain products, eliminating competition and causing prices to skyrocket in areas already suffering from a lack of public services. One resident described being unable to buy a broom at a hardware store because the shop was no longer 'authorized' to sell it.
The financial scale of this criminal enterprise is staggering. Investigations have uncovered that gangs have set up shell companies, registered under fake names, to act as official internet service providers. These entities buy signal from major telecom operators and then resell it at a premium within their territories. The state security secretariat has identified at least 18 such companies operating in just three neighborhoods: ten in Rio das Pedras, five in Gardênia Azul, and three in Muzema.
In response, the Rio state government and security forces are launching a multi-pronged counter-offensive. A key strategy involves a technological pivot: replacing vulnerable physical cables with radio-based internet connections in areas slated for reoccupation, using existing transmission towers. Furthermore, a recent regulatory change now requires all internet providers, regardless of size, to register with the national telecom agency Anatel, closing a loophole that allowed small criminal operations to fly under the radar.
Law enforcement is also focusing on financial strangulation. The Civil Police has already requested the freezing of nearly R$6 billion in assets and funds linked to these criminal organizations. Since 2025, 514 suspects involved in expanding these criminal activities have been arrested. Experts emphasize that a lasting solution requires a comprehensive approach, including fighting the corruption that allows these groups to co-opt public agents and strictly limiting their access to weapons and state collaboration.
Based on reporting from g1.