In a 17–18 November 2025 enforcement blitz, the Federal Police at São Paulo/Guarulhos airport captured six fugitives wanted for crimes ranging from drug trafficking to domestic violence, seized two fraudulent passports (Chinese and Peruvian) and arrested a Paraguayan passenger carrying nearly one kilo of cocaine strapped to his legs.
The operation relied on biometric e-gates, scanner-imaging and data-sharing with Ameripol’s anti-smuggling unit. The Peruvian suspect was detected when his altered passport failed an ICAO PKI check, illustrating how Brazil’s upgraded document-verification hardware closes loopholes that counterfeiters have exploited.
![Weekend sweep at Guarulhos nets fugitives, fake passports and drug couriers]()
For global-mobility programmes the message is clear: travellers presenting damaged or recently renewed passports may face extra scrutiny as algorithms flag anomalies. Companies should audit employees’ document integrity and ensure that third-country contractors do not attempt to transit with forged papers, which carry penalties of up to five years’ imprisonment in Brazil.
The PF added that joint canine and X-ray patrols will be intensified ahead of the Christmas travel peak and COP30 influx, advising airlines to brief crews on behavioural indicators of internal-body drug concealment and to reinforce carrier-liability rules under Law 11.343/2006.
The operation relied on biometric e-gates, scanner-imaging and data-sharing with Ameripol’s anti-smuggling unit. The Peruvian suspect was detected when his altered passport failed an ICAO PKI check, illustrating how Brazil’s upgraded document-verification hardware closes loopholes that counterfeiters have exploited.
For global-mobility programmes the message is clear: travellers presenting damaged or recently renewed passports may face extra scrutiny as algorithms flag anomalies. Companies should audit employees’ document integrity and ensure that third-country contractors do not attempt to transit with forged papers, which carry penalties of up to five years’ imprisonment in Brazil.
The PF added that joint canine and X-ray patrols will be intensified ahead of the Christmas travel peak and COP30 influx, advising airlines to brief crews on behavioural indicators of internal-body drug concealment and to reinforce carrier-liability rules under Law 11.343/2006.
More From Brazil
View all
LATAM Brasil adds direct flights from São Paulo to Amsterdam and Brussels, expanding corporate links with Europe
LATAM to launch Guarulhos–Uberaba service, strengthening regional air access in Minas Gerais
