Brazilian gang sets fire to sugar cane fields

Sao Paulo: Several suspects arrested for setting fire to sugar cane plantations in Sao Paulo state told police they had links to an organized criminal gang and were taking revenge for government anti-crime measures, a senior state official said Tuesday.

The fires that broke out last week spread rapidly across the arid fields over the weekend, at the height of the dry season, destroying thousands of hectares of sugar cane plantations and sending smoke clouds covering nearby towns.

Agriculture Secretary Guilherme Piai told Reuters that fires broke out in several locations at the same time, suggesting they were not accidental.

Here is another video of burning sugar cane fields in the state of Sao Paulo #Brazilthe number 1 #sugar producer in the country. Any spark near the extremely dry fields after months without rain can cause huge fires. #environment #climate photo.twitter.com/ut1TFF6JpB

— Marcelo Teixeira (@tx_marcelo) August 23, 2024

The government suspects that one of Brazil’s largest criminal gangs, Primeiro Comando da Capital (commonly known as PCC), is behind the fires. The fires are intended as retaliation for measures to combat the criminal trade in counterfeit fuels.

“Organized crime has bought up a number of bankrupt fuel plants and hundreds of gas stations. Perhaps this is a way to take revenge for the actions against organized crime,” Piai said.

PCC was founded in 1993 by prisoners in a maximum security prison in Sao Paulo. The gang grew from drug trafficking to become the most powerful and feared criminal gang in Brazil.

Brazil’s Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro previously called the fires in sugar cane plantations criminal, but he did not provide details.

More than 2,100 fires raged in sugarcane fields, resulting in the burning of 59,000 hectares of sugarcane fields and regrowth areas. São Paulo accounts for about half of Brazil’s sugarcane plantations.

According to the Organization of Sugar Cane Producers Associations in Orplana, the fires have caused losses estimated at 350 million reais (63.59 million dollars).

Governor Tarcisio de Freitas estimated the total damage to crops and other properties and activities at more than R$1 billion.

Four men were arrested Monday after they were caught red-handed in possession of containers of gasoline to set fires, Freitas said. A fifth suspect was arrested Tuesday, authorities said.
(REUTERS)