South America’s biggest gang has immense sway in Brazil
First Capital Command seems to run a shadow state in parts of the country
BOMBS AND bullets could not remove cracolândia, the largest open-air drug market in South America, from the heart of São Paulo. When violence failed, the police took away the black tents in which women weighed packages of powder. They raided the surrounding hotels, where customers ordered food on delivery apps while waiting for their illicit orders. Still, the business flowed. The dealers merely put up umbrellas and sold drugs from backpacks.
This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Crack on”
From the May 14th 2022 edition
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