The Secretary of Public Security of SP, Guilherme Derrite (PL), during an event at the Barro Branco Military Police Academy, on 05/23/2025. — Photo: Pablo Jacob/GESP
Former Rota captain and ally of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL), Guilherme Derrite (PP) was elected senator for São Paulo with 30.69% of the votes after a three-year stint at the Public Security Secretariat marked by an increase of more than 80% in deaths resulting from police intervention, under the defense of a hard-line policy against crime.
The other place went to André do Prado (PL). In addition to them, Marcos Pontes, also from PL, completes the São Paulo bench in the Senate.
This is not Derrite's first time occupying a seat in the National Congress. In 2018, he was elected federal deputy for São Paulo and, in 2022, he was re-elected. The reserve captain is considered one of the main leaders of the so-called "bullet bench" — formed by parliamentarians linked to public security forces and criminal hardening agendas.
Between 2023 and 2025, Derrite left the Chamber of Deputies to command the Public Security Secretariat in the Tarcísio de Freitas (Republican) government. During his three years as secretary, he took leave twice.
In March 2024, he temporarily left his role to resume his position as federal deputy and be rapporteur for the bill that ended the temporary releases, known as "saidinhas", of prisoners from the semi-open regime on holidays and commemorative dates.
The second dismissal took place in November 2025, when the Secretary of Public Security returned to the Chamber of Deputies to be rapporteur for the Anti-Faction bill. With an eye on the 2026 elections, Derrite did not return to his position in the São Paulo government and began to dedicate himself to political articulation in Brasília. The project's rapporteur, one of Congress' main proposals in the area of public security, also helped to expand the deputy's national profile.
In Congress, Derrite presented a substitute for the text sent by the government and defended tougher legislation against criminal organizations and militias. When the proposal returned from the Senate in February this year, he recommended that deputies reject most of the changes made by senators.
The Chamber followed the guidance, preserving much of the text created by the deputies under its rapporteurship. Among the points maintained is the creation of the crime of "structured social dominance", with sentences of 20 to 40 years. The project was later sanctioned and became Law 15,358/2026.
Tarcísio de Freitas and Guilherme Derrite during Rota's anniversary ceremony, in SP — Photo: TOMZÉ FONSECA/FUTURA PRESS/ESTADÃO CONTEÚDO
Police lethality
Derrite's time at the Public Security Secretariat was marked by an increase in police lethality. Data from the Special Action Group for Public Security and External Control of Police Activity (Gaesp), of the Public Ministry of São Paulo, show that the number of people killed by police officers on duty or off duty went from 477 in 2022, the last year before the Tarcísio-Derrite administration, to 877 in 2025 — an increase of 83%.
The level recorded in 2024 and 2025 had not been seen since 2017, under the Geraldo Alckmin government (current vice-president), when there were still no body cameras on military police uniforms. Gaesp has been monitoring police lethality data since 2017.
The increase occurred amid the defense, by Derrite and the Tarcísio government, of a tougher security policy. Right at the beginning of the administration, the PM's operations in Baixada Santista became one of the main symbols of this strategy.
Operation Shield, in 2023, and Operation Summer, in 2024, left 84 people dead, according to data consolidated by the Public Ministry. Together, they became the second action coordinated by the police with the highest mortality rate. The first is the Carandiru massacre, which took place in 1992 and left 111 inmates dead during a PM invasion.
The operations also provoked criticism from residents, human rights organizations and the Public Defender's Office, who highlighted allegations of rights violations and torture. The São Paulo government, on the other hand, maintained that the actions were necessary to combat organized crime and the police acted in confrontations with criminals.
Tarcísio, Flávio Bolsonaro, Guilherme Derrite and Ricardo Nunes at the March for Jesus — Photo: WERTHER SANTANA/ESTADÃO CONTEÚDO/ESTADÃO CONTEÚDO
Reduction in crime rates
The figures from the historical series of the São Paulo Public Security Secretariat (SSP), started in 2001, show that, in 2025, the state recorded the lowest annual totals ever recorded for homicides, robberies, cargo thefts and vehicle thefts.
There were 2,438 homicides in the period, the lowest number in the historical series. The previous record was 2,517 cases, recorded in 2024. Before that, the lowest mark had been observed in 2023, with 2,605 homicides.
In the same year, the state recorded 129 robberies, also the lowest total since the beginning of the series. The previous record low was 163 cases, recorded in 2023. In 2024, there were 166 occurrences.
The 2025 survey also recorded 3,470 cargo thefts, the lowest number in the historical series. The previous lowest mark was recorded in 2002, with 3,676 occurrences. The indicator remained above this level for more than two decades before reaching the new record.
Finally, the number of vehicle thefts also reached the lowest level in the series. There were 25,024 cases in 2025, surpassing the previous record low of 31,696 occurrences, recorded in 2024.
Police career
Born in Sorocaba, in the interior of São Paulo, Derrite entered the Barro Branco Military Police Academy at the age of 18. He graduated in Social Sciences and Public Security and also studied Law. The future senator began his career in 2006 as a lieutenant working in Osasco, in Greater São Paulo.
He then arrived at Rota (Rondas Ostensivas Tobias de Aguiar), considered one of the most traditional elite troops in São Paulo, where he worked between 2010 and 2013. It was during this period that he built part of the image of a hard-line police officer that he would later take to politics.
In 2015, a recording, revealed by Ponte Jornalismo, made when he was still an officer in the PM, became public and caused a crisis in the corporation. In the audio, Derrite stated that he considered it "shameful" that a police officer spent five years working on the streets without having at least three incidents resulting in the death of suspects.
The speech took place during a discussion about the transfer of then lieutenant Rafael Telhada da Rota to another unit and amid the debate on measures to reduce police lethality. Derrite was arrested by the PM's Internal Affairs Department due to the recording. The case was later closed by the Military Court.
After leaving Rota, Derrite worked in the Tactical Force and in the training of military police officers. Between 2015 and 2018 he also worked as an officer in the Military Police Fire Department.
The experience in the PM later became one of the hallmarks of his political career. Upon arriving in Congress, Derrite began to work mainly on issues related to public security and criminal enforcement.
André do Prado, Tarcísio de Freitas and Guilherme Derrite at the Morumbi ballot box — Photo: Marília Barbosa/g1
