Rio de Janeiro - Police and soldiers on Wednesday captured one of Rio de Janeiro's most wanted drug trafficking bosses, officials said.
The capture of the man known widely by his nickname "Rogerio 157" was a high profile success for security forces, who despite military backing are struggling to control well-armed narco gangs in the city's poor neighbourhoods, known as favelas.
"The trafficker Rogerio Avelino da Silva, or Rogerio 157, was detained in the community of Arara, in (Rio's) Northern Zone, in a joint operation of security forces... with support from the armed forces," the Rio state security secretary tweeted.
G1 news site published photos of "Rogerio 157" in handcuffs.
He has been high on the wanted list for months. In September, his gunmen engaged in street fighting with loyalists of a jailed rival trafficking boss called Nem for control of the huge Rocinha favela.
The violence, in which residents filmed gang members firing automatic weapons in the narrow streets of the favela, prompted deployment of more than 1 000 police and soldiers. However, "Rogerio 157" eluded multiple attempts at his arrest.
Almost 3 000 police and troops were deployed on Wednesday in the operation in which "Rogerio 157" was captured, local media said. He is accused of drug trafficking, extortion and murder.
