The poles that raise some cameras in the Muralha Paulista program, the state government’s surveillance system, have an unusual appearance compared to rival Smart Sampa, São Paulo City Hall, and many other pillars installed around the city.
A bet by municipal and state administrations as an asset against crime, Smart Sampa and Muralha Paulista continue to slip into different themes and heat up behind the scenes of politics, each government shining the spotlight on its son.
As an example, Muralha Paulista helped civil and military police identify the car used to run over and drag Tainara Souza Santos, 31, for approximately 1 km on the morning of November 29. The author was arrested. A few days later, on Sunday morning (7), Smart Sampa recorded the escape of the men who stole works of art from the Mário de Andrade library. One of them was identified and taken into custody.
While the administration of Ricardo Nunes (MDB) is becoming more discreet with camera security, with the installation of a Chinese hat against theft, the Military Police is increasingly innovating against acts of vandalism of the equipment that makes up the Muralha Paulista network.
Posts on the Tietê seafront, near Shopping D, in Canindé, in the central region, have been fitted with barbed wire to try to scare off vandals. In other points in the central region, the Prime Minister has already installed metal spikes. In both situations, the appearance contrasts with the other pillars that raise wires in the city.
According to the SSP (Secretariat of Public Security), concertina, as the wire with spiral-shaped blades is called, does not entail any additional costs.
“The equipment was installed by a company contracted to perform the service and there is no additional cost to the structure to prevent acts of vandalism,” he said in a note after being asked about protection. It is unclear when equipment began to be installed on the poles.
In a statement, the Municipal Department of Urban Security said it does not use thorns on the Smart Sampa camera poles to prevent theft and vandalism, as the Chinese hat is limited.
“The maintenance, repair or replacement of Smart Sampa equipment is the responsibility of the consortium that implemented the platform, at no cost to the municipal management.
According to the town hall, 40,000 cameras are in operation at strategic points in the city, including 20,000 public cameras and 20,000 private ones. “Since its implementation, the intelligent surveillance system has already contributed to 2,504 arrests of fugitives from justice, the location of 130 missing persons, 1,539 incidents involving vehicles and 3,650 arrests in the act.”
On the other hand, the Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans) government declared that security forces remained committed to fighting crime in all regions of São Paulo, including Canindé.
“Thanks to the efforts undertaken, in the police station of the 1st section (Center), which covers the area, thefts in general decreased by 16.65% from January to October of this year compared to the same period of the previous year. In total, 6,432 offenders were arrested or apprehended, i.e. 358 more arrests than during the same period of 2024.”
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