A 39-year-old man was caught red-handed on Thursday (4/12), on suspicion of blackmailing employees and carrying out attacks against Romo Logistica trains in Baixada Santista, on the southern coast of São Paulo.
This person was arrested while the representative of the company responsible for the trains offered to stop the attacks in exchange for a monthly sum.
According to the Public Security Secretariat, the attacks on the trains were already under investigation, which found that the criminals damaged the locomotives by cutting air hoses, stealing power cables or carrying out other acts of sabotage, such as gaining access to the carriages and stealing goods.
Starting in October, the criminal group began setting moving vehicles on fire, endangering residents near the tracks.
The arrested man was transferred to Section 5 of the State Criminal Investigation Department (Deic), where he remained in custody and at the disposal of justice. The case was registered as extortion, criminal connection and risk of railway disaster.
blackmail
- According to the Public Prosecution, the arrested suspect contacted company employees via cell phone messages to offer a “service.”
- The suspect later stated that the attacks would end with a monthly payment.
- The man was caught red-handed after arranging a meeting with representatives of Rumo Logística to offer him the “service”.
Attacks
A train loaded with cellulose was the target of an arson attack on the night of November 26 on the Cubatao railway line. According to the concessionaire, 12 vehicles were set on fire during the vandalism.
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The company’s vehicles have been the target of vandalism in recent weeks
Reproduction/Globo2 TV from 8
A criminal group set fire to moving vehicles, among other criminal acts
Reproduction/Globo3 TV from 8
The man was arrested after blackmailing employees by offering monthly payments to end attacks on trains
Reproduction/Globo4 TV from 8
Police say the attacks on the trains were criminal
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Police arrest a suspect in connection with the Cubatao train attacks
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Firefighters fight fires on burning trains
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Train fire in Cubatao
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The fire in Cubatao was part of the criminal attacks on trains
Disclosure/Fire Department
Another train with a similar load also caught fire on November 7, near the Vale Novo neighborhood, in São Vicente.
On that occasion, the team went to the company’s yard in Rodovia Conejo Dominio Rangone in Cubatao, where firefighters managed to contain the fire.
October Intensive
In October, the agency was also subjected to two attacks on the coast. The first incident occurred on the afternoon of the 21st, near Estrada do Acarão, in São Vicente, when Romo’s escort team was called and found that the pressure hose for the train’s brakes had been intentionally cut.
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The criminals forced the transportation process to stop and took advantage of the isolated area to open the exits of three vehicles and unload the soybean load. The accident led to delays and the need for emergency repairs and had a direct impact on the railway schedule.
In the other case, a company representative was informed that a train transporting corn to the port of Santos was making an unscheduled stop in Estrada do Baratinga. The security team appointed by the franchisee went to the site and found that 11 vehicles had their bottom doors (unloading hatches) open.
Each of them was carrying 90 tons of corn, so much of the load was found scattered on the ground. The train was stopped again by cutting the hose of the air-pressurized brake system.