‘It’s very traumatic’: couriers report a sequence of robberies and think about leaving the profession – 03/01/2023 – Market

In January of this year, two men approached the delivery man Renan de Lira Rodrigues and announced a robbery. Rodrigues, 41, argued with the criminals. With the arrival of other cars and drivers, the robbers fled taking only the key to the motorcycle that the victim used to make a delivery in Itaquaquecetuba, in Greater São Paulo.

“On January 16th, I was at my house and I received a call from the police saying that they had arrested these thieves. I went to the police station to recognize the offenders, but, unfortunately, what I recognized was a minor, and you know how things are. .. He signed a term at the police station and left through the front door”, he says.

This time, Renan’s damage was just the key, but he already had his motorcycle, wallets, personal objects and documents stolen in at least five other robberies and several theft attempts that he suffered in recent years in Greater São Paulo. BBC News Brasil spoke with motorcyclists who say they are scared and are even considering changing professions due to the high number of robberies.

In 2022, the Secretariat for Public Security (SSP) recorded 143,936 thefts, an increase of 11.93% over the previous year. When compared to 2019, in the pre-pandemic period when there were no restrictions on the movement of people, the increase is 2%.

Working as a motorcycle courier for 15 years, Renan says that in 2020 he was robbed and the criminals took the motorcycle and all the merchandise that was in the trunk when he worked for a dental product company. However, the motorcycle stopped and he recovered the vehicle and objects.

The most traumatic robbery took place before the pandemic, when he was making a delivery in Itaim Paulista, in the extreme east of the capital.

“I managed to get the bike back, but I lost all my belongings, including the merchandise from the app. This time, it was pretty scary because the thieves were very young and said they would kill me if I didn’t hand over the bike. But none of that happened”, he says. .

Renan said he doesn’t think about changing his profession, but says he’s afraid to work and always remembers the times he was robbed.

“It’s quite traumatic. You feel like garbage, a nothing. Your life is worth nothing in the hands of these people. You leave home and you’re not sure if you’re going to come back”, he says to the report.

He said that, in addition to the robberies, he suffered a series of robbery attempts and that it would take “all day talking” if he tried to report all the cases. He says that just while the bike was parked in a pocket in the center of São Paulo, there were three attempts. Fortunately, he says that the damage was small and he only needed to change the core of the key.

When contacted, the SSP informed in a note that “it is aware of the situation and points out that the fight against crime in São Paulo is one of the priorities of the current management, which determined the strengthening of policing throughout the State through Operation Impacto, with the objective of expanding ostensive action, enhancing the perception of security and reducing criminal indicators, through targeted operational reinforcement and strategic planning based on the use of police intelligence and data geoprocessing”.

The folder also reports that, since January 11, “Operation Impact” has arrested 934 people, seized 49 firearms and a ton of drugs by the 26th, in São Paulo alone.

reception

Political scientist and former national undersecretary for Public Security, Guaracy Mingardi says that this increase in robberies is widespread in all regions of the country and has expanded after the covid-19 pandemic.

“The number of couriers has increased a lot. Today, you see many more motoboys on the street. The criminal always attacks where it is easier. Robbing a motoboy on the outskirts is not difficult because he will hardly react. And stealing a motorcycle parked in more central areas it’s faster and easier than a car. Crimes happen everywhere. The thief just adapts”, says the expert.

For Mingardi, who is also a member of the Brazilian Public Security Forum, the most important thing to avoid new crimes is for the police to invest more in investigation, mainly to identify the recipients of these stolen vehicles.

“It’s no use staying behind a motorcycle thief. You have to arrest the receiver, especially what you buy to resell. And, for that, you need an investigation because they won’t be caught in PM raids. They are important and should have much more because they only work for the first 15 minutes. After that, they let you know by radio and they don’t go there anymore”, says Guaracy Mingardi.

The public safety specialist also points out that the police officers who participate in these blitzes should also be better trained to identify motorcycles that have stolen parts.

“You have to train the police to see if the chassis doesn’t have a cold number, if the numbering of the parts matches that of the engine, etc. These actions have reduced car theft. You have to have strategy and tactics, including negotiating with people in prison to identify the senders and receivers”, says Mingardi.

Cry

On January 20, Pablo Lyncoln published a video on his Instagram account in which he appears crying after having his motorcycle stolen by two armed men. Desperate after seeing the bandits take the vehicle he used to work, he makes an appeal.

“They just stole my motorcycle here working (working). I’ll leave it in the next stories (the license plate and information on the motorcycle). If you can share or know of any tapes, please save here”, he says.

On Wednesday morning (1st), the boy still hadn’t located the vehicle he uses to work.

After being robbed three times in less than a year, Gabriel (not his real name), 38, says he intends to change his profession. He said that the constant trauma made him start an electrical course to work in an area that he considers safer.

“I think a lot about my two young children. I can’t stay in something that puts not only my life at risk, but also my family’s income, which depends on my work to eat,” he said.

He says that what makes him even sadder is that two of the three robberies he suffered in the last year took place in the same neighborhood where he lives, in the South Zone of São Paulo.

“The last time was two blocks from my house, when I arrived home from work at dawn. They took my motorcycle, my cell phone and my wallet. I arrived home with only the delivery bag and completely devastated. Luckily, my motorcycle was insured . But I don’t want to go through this anymore. I’m going to try to take a new path in my life as soon as possible”.