Operation against illegal mining arrests man and seizes luxury cars in MG

The court issued two preventive arrest warrants. One of them was fulfilled with the arrest of the 41-year-old man, in the capital of Minas Gerais; the other person under investigation was not located and is considered a fugitive. Four search and seizure warrants were also issued.

The court orders were carried out by members of the Federal, Civil, Military and Penal police of Minas Gerais, in Belo Horizonte, Ribeirão das Neves and in the region of Itabirito, in the Central Region of Minas Gerais. The orders were issued by the 3rd Federal Criminal Court of Belo Horizonte.

During the searches, two luxury vehicles, a loader, a gold chain, two iPhones and an agenda were seized.

According to investigations, the suspects had acted in a coordinated manner in the irregular exploitation of mineral resources.

The case began to be investigated after an incident registered in September this year. On that occasion, a backhoe was seized during the detection of an illegal mineral extraction activity.

According to investigators, members of the group later used firearms and intimidation to steal the machinery, which was in public custody. The backhoe was later recovered, and the suspects involved in removing the equipment were identified during the investigation.