Investigation reveals sophisticated scheme of dismantling and international trafficking; group stole 53 Toyota luxury vehicles in 2025 alone
The Civil Police of the Federal District (PCDF) launched, on Tuesday (3), Operation Empire, dismantling one of the most sophisticated criminal structures in the country focused on the theft of luxury pickup trucks. With an exclusive focus on the Toyota Hilux and SW4 models, the group was the target of an action coordinated by the Division for the Repression of Robbery and Theft of Vehicles (DRFV/Corpatri), which served 110 judicial warrants in the Federal District, Ceará, Goiás and Rio de Janeiro.
The central strategy of the operation was the financial asphyxiation of the leadership. The Court ordered the blocking of R$ 15.9 million in assets and bank accounts, an amount equivalent to the estimated damage caused by the theft of 53 vehicles in early 2025 alone. The seizure of assets aims to prevent illicit capital from financing the restructuring of the gang.
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The investigations, which lasted 11 months, revealed a hierarchical organization, described by investigators as a “criminal enterprise”. The thefts were not random, but carried out to order, using technology to circumvent the Japanese automaker’s original security systems and start the vehicles in a few minutes.
After the subtraction, the logistics of the crime were divided into two lucrative fronts. Part of the fleet was sent to façade workshops, where immediate dismantling took place. The parts, with high added value, were reinserted into the illegal auto parts market or sold on digital sales platforms, making tracking difficult.
The second aspect involved international trafficking. Intact trucks were transported to border regions with Bolivia and Paraguay. There, they functioned as “hard currency”, being exchanged directly for shipments of drugs and weapons, which returned to the large Brazilian urban centers.
The police offensive resulted in 20 preventive arrests and 23 temporary arrests, ranging from the perpetrators of the thefts to financial and logistical operators. The accused will answer for aggravated theft, money laundering, tampering with an identifying sign and criminal organization. Together, the penalties can exceed 20 years of imprisonment.
