In progress on the country’s main highways since last Thursday (22) by the Federal Highway Police, this year’s Operation Christmas has already involved the apprehension of drugs, the recovery of stolen vehicles and the arrest of people wanted by the court.
Operation Christmas 2022 continues until tomorrow (25), with the main objective of ensuring road safety, in order to prevent accidents and preserve lives on roads across the country. Among the planned actions is the fight against drunk driving in the period that traditionally registers “a considerable increase in the flow of vehicles on the roads”.
The operation will also work to monitor the speed of vehicles, prohibited overtaking and the use of cell phones by drivers. Approaches also observe whether vehicle occupants use seat belts, as well as car seats and child restraint devices.
amphetamine and cocaine
In the first hours of operation, the PRF seized, on a stretch of BR-364 in Ji-Paraná (RO), a shipment with more than 30 kilos of cocaine hydrochloride. The substance was being transported in the secret compartment of a white Fiat Strada by a 36-year-old man who was on his way to São Luiz (MA).
“Rondônia does not produce cocaine, but it is one of the states that borders Bolivia, making our territory one of the corridors for the distribution of Andean production, which is destined for the profitable European market,” reported the PRF.
On Friday, 72.6 kg of “cocaine-like substance” were seized in Tocantins. The drug was being transported in an internal compartment of a white Celta vehicle in the municipality of Guaraí.
Another incident occurred in the Bahian municipality of Itaberaba (Bahia), involving a truck driver transporting nine amphetamine pills (rivet), a substance used to keep drivers awake in order to work for long periods without rest.
“Driving under the influence of a psychotropic substance and not respecting the law of rest are behaviors that endanger the safety of everyone who travels on the country’s federal highways”, informed the PRF, highlighting that Law 13.103/15 (Truck Drivers’ Law) determines the time that professional drivers must rest. Monitoring is done through the tachograph.
The act took place during the inspection of Operation Tiradentes, at Km 225 of BR-242 at around 5 pm yesterday (23). When the number of hours that the driver was driving without a rest break was found, the police suspected that he would have used the substance to stay awake.
wanted by justice
Also in Bahia (in the municipality of Gandu), a man with an open arrest warrant for murder was arrested yesterday afternoon (23), in a Celta car with Salvador plates, during inspections carried out at km-361 of the BR-101 .
“When the mandatory documents were consulted in the security systems, it was verified that the driver of the vehicle, a 29-year-old man, had an open arrest warrant resulting from a lawsuit for the crime of homicide, which occurred in the city of Laje, interior of Bahia. In the face of the evidence, a voice of arrest was given “, detailed the PRF.
Another fugitive from justice – in this case for drug trafficking – was detained by the PRF in Juazeiro (BA) during inspection actions on the BR-407. He drove a Saveiro truck and had no documents.
When informing personal data, it was verified the existence of an arrest warrant in his name since August of this year, from a warrant issued by the Criminal Court of Jaguarari (BA). In May 2018 he had been arrested for drug trafficking.
Repossessed vehicles
In Feira de Santana (BA), the PRF recovered a stolen truck on BR-116. In the approach, the police officers requested the mandatory carrying documents of the driver and the vehicle and verified that the car had a theft or theft restriction, registered on December 19, in the city of Formosa, Goiás.
“The driver of the vehicle, a 46-year-old man, reported having purchased the vehicle through an advertisement on the internet, in the city of Barreiras. He also stated that he had no contact with the alleged seller and did not have proof of the commercial transaction carried out for the purchase of the car ”, reported the PRF.
Later, it was found that the driver had passages for the crime of reception in the states of Pará and Tocantins.
Another stolen vehicle was recovered in the city of Ribeira do Pombal (BA) yesterday afternoon, during inspections carried out in the locality, close to km 170 of the BR 110. of Our Lady of Socorro (SE).
The driver of the vehicle, a 36-year-old man, said he was unaware of the vehicle restriction, and that he had been using it as an employee of a company for just over 1 month.
On the BR-407, in Juazeiro (BA), a Kwid vehicle that was allegedly stolen in São Paulo was recovered. The driver of the vehicle was arrested after trying to escape inspection, disobeying a stop order. He then accelerated the vehicle and abandoned it on a city street.
According to the PRF, the police saw him entering a store. After the approach, they discovered that it was a stolen vehicle. “The man claimed that he had purchased the car for R$10,000 because he believed it was a vehicle with financing irregularities”, reported the PRF.
Yesterday morning, the PRF recovered, on the BR-104 in Lagoa Seca (PB), a vehicle stolen in April, which was circulating with “tampered identifying signs”, which raised suspicions that it was a cloned vehicle.
The T-Cross vehicle was at a gas station and had a series of modifications, such as lowered suspension, mirrored glass and a larger wheel than the original, which caught the attention of the police, who then decided to find out if the car was in accordance with the Brazilian Traffic Code.
During the approach, a 23-year-old man presented himself as the owner. “Continuing with the inspection, the police denoted that it was not just the aesthetics of the car that was modified. Several identifying elements have been tampered with.”
