One of the suspects in planning a terrorist attack was arrested in Ceará.
Among the ten suspects of planning terrorist attacks in Brazil, one was arrested in Ceará, during Operation Hashtag, launched this Thursday (21) by the Federal Police. Other arrest warrants were executed in the states of Amazonas, Paraíba, Goiás, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, Mato Grosso and Rio Grande do Sul. "They went from simple comments about the Islamic State and terrorism to preparatory acts," said the Minister of Justice, Alexandre de Moraes.
Ceará247 - Operation Hashtag, launched this Thursday (21) by the Federal Police, arrested ten suspects of planning terrorist attacks in Brazil. The arrests, according to the Minister of Justice, Alexandre de Moraes, took place in 10 states – including Ceará – and all those detained are Brazilian. According to the minister, the group communicated through messaging apps.
"They went from simple comments about the Islamic State and terrorism to preparatory acts," the minister said in a press interview, regarding the operation investigating the possible participation of Brazilians in an international criminal organization, such as an Islamic State cell in the country.
According to the minister, it is an amateur group that, nevertheless, cannot be ignored by public security forces. "It was an amateur cell, without any planned preparation. An organized cell wouldn't try to buy a weapon online. It's a disorganized cell," he added.
Moraes reported that, in addition to the oath to the Islamic State taken online, known as "baptism," there was no direct contact between the Brazilians and the Islamic State. e-mail There is also no evidence that they received funding from ISIS.
Federal police
In a statement, the Federal Police reported that approximately 130 officers participated in the operation. The arrest warrants were executed in the states of Amazonas, Ceará, Paraíba, Goiás, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, Mato Grosso, and Rio Grande do Sul. There were ten temporary arrests, two coercive detentions, and 19 search and seizure warrants.
According to the Federal Police, this is the first police operation since the publication of Law 13.260/2016, which deals with terrorism.
"The investigations began in April with the monitoring of social networks by the Federal Police's Anti-Terrorism Division - DAT. Those involved participated in a virtual group called Defenders of Sharia and planned to acquire weapons to commit crimes in Brazil and even abroad," the statement said.
The suspects will face charges of promoting a terrorist organization and carrying out preparatory acts of terrorism. The penalty for the first crime is five to eight years in prison, in addition to a fine. For those who carry out preparatory acts, the penalty ranges from three to 15 years in prison.
(With information from Agência Brasil)