Four cops allegedly involved in drug trafficking were arrested in Mexico on Tuesday, bringing the total number of similar arrestees to 61 in a nationwide raid to fight police corruption.
The raid, "Operation Two Faces," started on Monday and targeted mainly a state police headquarters in Duque de Caxias, Rio's metropolitan region. Almost 10 percent of all the officers there had been arrested.
The arrests were made after an eight-month investigation, police said.
The investigation showed that the police officers might take bribes ranging from 1,050 to 2,050 U.S. dollars for not "intervening" in the drug trafficking activities in the neighborhoods ruled by drug dealers. What's more, some cops might be directly involved in drug trafficking.
According to police chief Andre Drummond, five drug lords arrested in the operation confirmed the existence of the bribes.
Drummond believed more police officers were involved in the bribery scheme, adding that it is important to complete the investigation of those arrested so as to prevent them from being released back to the street.
Rio's State Governor Sergio Cabral on Tuesday also highlighted the importance of the operation.
"A policeman related to the traffic of drugs is a worse criminal than the average criminals," he told reporters. "This kind of outlaw in uniform must be eliminated."
Jose Mariano Beltrame, state secretary of public security, said the operation was a way "to pay homage" to good and honest cops within the police force.
Source: Xinhua
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