Brazil cracks down on illegal immigration

Alan Clendenning:

Police arrested 43 people Wednesday during raids on clandestine rings sneaking an increasing number of Brazilians into the United States, Europe and Mexico, authorities said.

Members of the U.S. Homeland Security Department and the Spanish Embassy in Brazil took part in the operation as observers, officials said.

Police said 60 search warrants and 56 arrest warrants were issued for suspected traffickers - including eight federal police agents, airline employees and members of Brazil's federal tax bureau - Federal Police Chief Jose Ivan Lobato said in a news conference in Sao Paulo.

A special agent in charge of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office in Miami said the operation was crucial to help stop illegal immigrants entering the United States, including possible terrorists.

"There was no evidence linking the traffickers to terrorism, but this was definitely a national security issue to us," special agent Jesus Torres told reporters. "Terrorism is always a concern when we are dealing with illegal immigration."

A small group of Peruvians and Chinese also were among those arrested in the raids, which had the participation of nearly 600 officers in four states.

More than 20 people were arrested in the southern state of Santa Catarina, a major center of illegal immigration to the United States, in a sweep dubbed "Operation Bye Bye Brazil."

Agents were also targeting gangs operating in the city of Governador Valadares in Minas Gerais state, another illegal immigration hotspot, and in the states of Parana and Espirito Santo. Police did not specify how many people were arrested in each state.

Typically, the gangs bus immigrants to Brazil's largest city of Sao Paulo and use Guarulhos International Airport, the country's main international air travel hub, to fly their clients to Mexico.

Workers and federal police at Sao Paulo's airport are accused of making it easier for migrants to board flights. Wednesday's raids also targeted travel agencies that served as intermediaries for the smugglers, and criminals specializing in forging travel documents.

The number of Brazilians captured on the U.S.-Mexico border - 27,000 from October to July, nearly triple the previous year - illustrates the trend. Brazil's government estimates half the 1.5 million Brazilians in the United States are there illegally.

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