The Cracha Preto (Black Badge) was a Brazilian vigilante gang from Sao Paulo, made up of former soldiers, police, prison guards, and firefighters.
History[]
Cracha Preto was formed in 2006 by Alvaro Neves, who recruited retired policemen, prison guards, Brazilian Army soldiers, and firefighters to serve in his vigilante group. However, it was similar to the other gangs of Brazil, as it dealt with criminal enterprises to give them a payroll. Its known activities were extortion, blackmail, drug trafficking, arms trafficking, kidnapping, murder, and torture. The gang's estimated size was around 400 members. The gang members were extremely well-armed and equipped, given military-grade equipment that they bought with their drug money.
The gang influenced politics through voter intimidation, and was connected to several high-ranking politicians. Cracha Preto was known for its use of torture such as asphyxiation and electrical charges, and disfigured its victims so that identification was nearly impossible.