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6 killed in police sweep of Rio favelas

01 June 2011 05:00 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Six people have been killed in a police sweep of Rio de Janeiro shanty towns allegedly launched to deal with drug traffickers and violent gangs, APA reports quoting Press TV.

On Tuesday, weapons and drugs were confiscated and an important area drug lord was killed in the police operations on the slums, which are known as favelas, AFP reported.

"There is a long history in the Complexo da Pedreira of robbery and assassination, including of police officers," said Police Colonel Aristeu Leonardo, who was in charge of the special police unit that swept into the Complexo Morro da Pedreira favela.

Heavily armed officers set up bases in 13 neighborhood areas and will remain there "for an undetermined amount of time," Leonardo said.

Police were also searching for the person who gunned down a police officer late on Monday.

On Sunday, six people were killed and three wounded in a battle between rival drug gangs for the control of the Para-Pedro favela, in the northern outskirts of Rio.

Brazilian police believe the criminals were seeking to spread into the area ahead of a government "pacification" program that includes 24-hour police presence.

So far, police "pacification" operations have been successfully organized in more than 20 city favelas. The increased police presence is complemented by a government program that hires local residents.

In late 2010, some 2,600 paratroopers, marines, and elite police, backed up with helicopters and armored personnel carriers, led a pre-dawn assault on gangs in the Vila Cruzeiro and Complexo do Alemao favelas that ended with 37 suspected criminals killed, a score of arrests, and the seizure of more than 500 weapons.