Brazilian Police Freeze Assets in Crypto-Linked Cocaine Trafficking Bust
Brazilian police have made a significant bust in their fight against international crime, taking down an alleged cocaine trafficking cartel that allegedly moved billions of Brazilian reais through various methods, including crypto-enabled illicit money brokers.
The investigation, which involved federal and state law enforcement, resulted in the arrest of nine people and the execution of 13 pretrial detention warrants and 44 search-and-seizure warrants across several states. The police also obtained court orders to freeze up to 1 billion reais ($197 million) in assets.
The organization is suspected of trafficking around 6.5 metric tons of cocaine, as well as laundering billions in Brazilian reals through various asset-concealment methods, including shell companies and luxury assets. The suspects will face charges including participation in a transnational criminal organization, international drug trafficking, and money laundering.
This bust follows the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioning six Ethereum addresses tied to a Sinaloa Cartel-linked money laundering network that allegedly converted drug proceeds into cryptocurrency in May.