Brazilian federal police arrested 13 suspects linked to a drug ring that used crypto and luxury car dealerships to launder proceeds from 6.5 tons of cocaine shipped to Europe.
Brazilian federal police arrested 13 people Thursday in a sweep that took down a drug trafficking ring accused of shipping more than 6.5 tons of cocaine to Europe and using cryptocurrency and shell companies to launder the proceeds.
The operation, called Operation Commodity, targeted a group that hid cocaine in bags of coffee and cement at the port of Rio de Janeiro. The drugs were destined for France, Belgium, Germany, Slovenia, and Spain, police said. The group operated a logistics network spanning South America, Europe, and Asia, according to investigators.
The money from the sales was laundered through shell companies that issued fake invoices for services never provided. A luxury car dealership in Greater São Paulo that sold Ferrari, Porsche, Corvette, and Land Rover vehicles was part of the scheme, investigators said. Cryptocurrency was used to move funds and obscure the trail.
Courts ordered the seizure of assets up to 1 billion reais, roughly $196 million. Police executed 44 search-and-seizure warrants across São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Santa Catarina, and Espírito Santo. A suspect died in a shootout during the arrests.
The group had links to the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) and Comando Vermelho (CV), two Brazilian criminal organizations. The Trump administration designated both as Specially Designated Global Terrorists earlier this year.
"The suspects will be held accountable for the crimes of transnational criminal organization, international drug trafficking, and money laundering," the Federal Police said in a statement.
The operation follows a separate police action earlier this month, Operation Exchange, which dismantled a $2 billion cryptocurrency money laundering ring.
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