“Irresponsible weapons use” was not reflected in a drop in homicides, says Dino

Minister Flávio Dino, of Justice and Public Security, said this Thursday (21) that Brazil had a policy of “irresponsible arms use” that was not reflected in the drop in homicides that was supposedly preached before. The statement occurred during the presentation of an overview of his performance at the head of the department, which will end on January 8th to take office as minister of the Federal Supreme Court (STF).

Dino also presented data relating to the fight against drug trafficking, said that the Guarantee of Law and Order (GLO) operations carried out by previous governments were “disastrous”, confirmed that he will promote an act in reference to January 8th and that the Marielle Franco case will be resolved, even if he is no longer in charge of the ministry.

According to Flávio Dino, the number of intentional violent crimes should close the year 2023 with a drop of approximately 6% compared to the year 2022, with a projection of 40.1 thousand compared to 42.6 thousand last year. Until the month of November, which has the recorded data presented by him, 36.8 thousand deaths were recorded, classified as intentional homicide, bodily injury followed by death, robbery and femicide.

“I want to highlight the decrees on weapons that those heralds of chaos said that the moment there were restrictions on weapons, homicides would rise. No, it didn’t happen. Therefore, this fallacy has been definitively dismantled, as we have a tendency, almost confirmation, of a reduction of around 6% (5.7%) compared to 2021 and 2022”, said Dino.

The actions against weapons were the first to be mentioned in the presentation, stating that, on January 1st, the decree was established that suspended new registrations and ordered the re-registration of weapons. And, in July, which created new rules for the acquisition and registration of weapons, “resulting in fewer weapons circulating.”

Dino stated that the data computed by the ministry shows that “there is no logical correlation between the growth of weapons and a reduction in violent deaths or homicides. There is not”. “For years, this ideology was repeated and revealed itself, definitively, to be out of step with reality,” he added.

The ministry’s report shows that there was a 79% reduction in the number of gun registrations in 2023 after the imposition of decrees by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) on the first day of government. There were 28.3 thousand until the month of November compared to 135.9 thousand throughout 2022.

The minister also emphasized that there was a 16% increase in the number of illegal weapons seized, from 9,800 until November, compared to 8,500 in the whole of last year. Flávio Dino classified the government’s anti-armament policies as the main “institutional achievements” of the year.

Weapons linked to drug trafficking

Dino stated that many of the illegal weapons seized were linked to drug trafficking, in which the ministry managed to advance in the decapitalization of criminal organizations.

According to the ministry’s balance sheet, there was a 10.3% increase in the volume of decapitalized assets of gangs, going from R$5.2 billion in 2022 to R$5.7 billion in 2023. “In my view, it will pass of R$ 6 billion”, said Dino in relation to the December numbers that must still be determined.

“In the next few days, a decree structuring the network should be issued, making it legal to seize assets belonging to gangs linked to organized crime,” highlighted the minister.

Crimes in the Amazon

Still on the issue of criminal organizations, Flávio Dino stated that the Ministry of Justice’s task force with the Federal Police, after the creation of a specific directorate against crimes in the Amazon, helped to reduce alerts of clear-cut deforestation and 54 % of the presence of mining dredgers.

“These numbers will be even higher as we close money laundering routes. We coordinated the drafting of a bill that is in the Chamber that closes this pipeline through which illegally extracted gold money is laundered,” he highlighted.

Dino also explained that the task force managed to destroy “a record number” of more than 750 mining ferries operating in the region.

GLO operations were “clumsy” before, says

Another point considered a priority by Dino during his management at the head of the ministry was the implementation of a Law and Order Guarantee (GLO) operation specific to areas of federal jurisdiction, such as ports and airports in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro and areas border in Paraná, Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul.

He stated that this was a “successful model” in which there was a “territorial limit” focused on attacking the logistics, decapitalization and money laundering of criminal organizations. The model, says Dino, “replaced clumsy operations with stray bullets and so on”.

Among the data presented regarding the GLO since November are the seizure of R$48 million in “illicit assets” from the gangs, the arrest of 432 people and the seizure of 56 tons of drugs.

The minister also emphasized that, throughout the year, operations in state prisons seized 2,400 cell phones, and actions in partnership with the federal government resulted in the seizure of more than 8,000 others.

8/1, Marielle case and MJ’s actions

At the end of the presentation, Dino confirmed that an event would take place on January 8th in the Senate, alluding to the first year of the invasion and depredation of the headquarters of the Three Powers, in Brasília, and reaffirmed that the Marielle and Anderson case will be clarified, but still without an estimate of how long it will take.

“Because of this case itself and the symbolic importance for Brazil of protecting women in politics and combating impunity, regardless of my presence here”, he highlighted.

Also during the presentation of the balance of actions at the head of the MJ, Dino highlighted the total investment of R$ 18 billion in the security area, with actions by the Federal Police and support for states and municipalities such as vehicles, equipment, daily allowances and transfers from the National Fund of Public Security (FNSP).

A little earlier, he announced the delivery of 700 vehicles to states and municipalities – 500 immediately and 200 in January –, some of which are parked in front of the ministry, on the Esplanada. Dino also announced the donation of body cameras to the Bahia police, as the beginning of a federal project to use the equipment.

Another initiative announced by Dino was the establishment of a wanted list by the Unified Public Security System (SUSP), with the offering of a reward, and the transfer of over R$78 million from the FNSP to the states with a focus on investigating homicides, searching missing persons and combating organized crime.