Civil police officers from the Delegated Services Defense Station (DDSD) carried out, this Tuesday (14), a operation against a criminal group involved in the theft of more than 700 electrical energy transformers from energy distributor Enelwhich operates in 66 of the 92 municipalities in Rio de Janeiro and serves more than 7 million consumers in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
Teams complied ten search and seizure warrants at addresses in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Niterói and in municipalities in the state of São Paulo.
During the action, transformers from the dealership were seized, as well as documents, electronic media and other assets that will assist in the investigations. The criminal association had a structured schemewhich consisted of fUrge large Enel transformers and transport them to reception points in cities in São Paulo, to sell the equipment.
Between June 22 and August 10, 2024, 775 electrical appliances were stolen from the companyon at least eight Saturdays in a row, when there were fewer employees on duty. The equipment was placed on trailers and sent to São Paulo. The loss is estimated at more than R$800,000.
The Enel warehouse from where the transformers were removed is in the municipality of Itaboraí, metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro. There, equipment for distribution and maintenance of electrical energy is stored, such as poles, transformers, cables, meters and parts.
According to investigations, an employee of the energy distribution company, who was responsible for authorizing the movement of these devices, was the main internal coordinator of the criminal scheme. The man determined the release of transformers on previously defined Saturdays and allowed the irregular departure of equipment without formal registration.
To do this, he gave orders to a second employee, who released the equipment and signed the exit notes. This second man was the link between internal employees and the receivers located in São Paulo and was responsible for coordinating withdrawals and payments for transport.
A driver confirmed that, since September 2023, he has transported transformers from the warehouse in Itaboraí to addresses located in São Paulo, upon payment by bank transfer. The transformers were then resold at prices below cost.
In a note, Enel Distribuição Rio informed that the operation is an offshoot of the investigations initiated by the distributor in July 2024, when the concessionaire identified the diversion of equipment by an employee. “As soon as it became aware of the theft, the company terminated the employee involved in the irregularities. On that occasion, Enel Rio contacted the police authorities and, since then, has collaborated with the investigations.”
The distributor informed that it remains at the disposal of the authorities to help clarify the facts.
