Police Probe Slimming-Pen Theft Ring After Rio Raids, SP Cargo Recovery

Overview

• Rio civil police from the 15th Precinct arrested a woman in Manguinhos on Jan. 29 during Operation Tourniquet, seizing slimming pens and materials tied to pharmacy thefts.
• Agents reported empty medication boxes and bundled coins resembling pharmacy takings, which they say indicate diversion of stolen goods for resale.
• Hours earlier, two North Zone Rio pharmacies in Irajá and Vila da Penha were robbed for high-value items including slimming pens, with staff threatened and a customer’s phone and wallet taken.
• Witnesses cited five assailants in one case, including a pregnant woman, and one store estimated about R$100,000 in losses after multiple robberies this year.
• In São Paulo state, military police recovered a stolen van in Arujá carrying 151 boxes of pharmaceuticals worth roughly R$800,000 and found signal blockers, as suspects fled into nearby woods.