Collateral injury risks in Brazil's Rio de Janeiro increase as gang violence spreads into tourist areas

On 17 June, Rio de Janeiro's Universidade Cándido Mendes reported that public shootouts in the city had increased by 36% year on year, from 2,355 to 3,210, in the four months (February–May) since the start of a military operation against criminal gangs. Such armed confrontations are occurring increasingly in formerly safe residential districts that are popular with expats and international tourists. Leme, for instance – located near Copacabana beach – has experienced several exchanges of gunfire since 5 June during confrontations between rival criminal gangs, the Comando Vermelho and the Terceiro Comando Puro, and security forces. On 8 June, criminals fleeing from the confrontation in Morro da Babilônia and Chapéu Mangueira opened fire on security forces near Vermelha Beach, leading to the suspension of cable car services up to Sugarloaf Mountain (one of the city's major tourist attractions). Two days later, seven bodies were recovered from the area. In a separate incident on 9 June, criminals and military police officers also exchanged fire a few hundred meters from Copacabana beach.

Significance: Although gang activity continues to be concentrated in Rio's slum areas, especially in the Alemão, Cidade de Deus, and Penha districts, this latest series of incidents highlights the spread of violence into more affluent areas. The city's gangs routinely utilise automatic rifles and grenades, and armed confrontations in public streets can last for two hours or more. Given the high number of rounds discharged during such confrontations, there is a risk of collateral injury for tourists and others caught in the immediate vicinity. In October 2017, a Spanish tourist was killed by police fire in the Rocinha favela (slum) after her car failed to stop at a police checkpoint. According to local sources, many of the residential and commercial buildings in the Leme area have been hit by stray bullets. Military intervention efforts – which appear increasingly likely to be extended beyond the initial deadline of 31 December 2018 – have currently focused on the Chácara do Céu, Jacarepaguá, Parque da Cidade, Rocinha, and Vidigal areas. Announcements of operations into other districts would indicate increased collateral injury and property damage risks there due to the armed confrontations that would likely result.