Brazil Police Target Fuel Mafia in $4.2 Billion Crackdown

São Paulo—In a headline reported Thursday by The Wall Street Journal, Brazil’s federal police carried out one of the largest anti-fraud operations in the country’s history, targeting what investigators say is a vast fuel-laundering network that moved more than 23 billion reais, about $4.2 billion, through gas stations, distributors, funds, and financial platforms.

For me, as founder of Bio Clean Energy and Bio Petro, the news is not a surprise. My own company was stripped by what I contend was a similar system of predation in Brazil’s fuel sector. In my experience, global traders such as Tricon, financiers like Bradesco, and legal intermediaries such as Bermudes act as facilitators of corruption, ensuring flows of methanol, capital, and court decisions that served the interests of criminal networks rather than legitimate investors. I believe Tricon has knowingly imported volumes of methanol far greater than Brazil’s industrial capacity could ever consume, and I believe some of its employees acted as agents of the PCC. These are my allegations and beliefs, not findings of the federal police in today’s operations.

Two Operations, Two Architectures

The crackdown unfolded under two banners, Operation Quasar and Operation Tank. According to official police statements, Quasar focused on São Paulo, Campinas, and Ribeirão Preto, where twelve search warrants targeted investment funds that investigators say acted as shells for money laundering. The funds allegedly masked ownership through chains of holdings and simulated trades. Judges ordered more than 1.2 billion reais in assets frozen.

Operation Tank was centered in Paraná, with actions spilling into Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. It aimed at a constellation of hundreds of companies, including filling stations, distribution firms, and collection houses. Authorities executed fourteen arrest warrants and forty two search orders. The federal revenue service said the network laundered at least 600 million reais through cash-splitting strategies and the use of “laranja” fronts.

The Consumer’s Loss

At least forty six gas stations in Curitiba were cited for “bomba baixa,” the practice of charging for more liters than delivered, and for adulterating fuel with illegal additives. Terra and CNN Brasil reported that inspectors found stations operating with manipulated pumps and storage tanks containing blends of gasoline cut with methanol and solvents. Prosecutors said consumers were defrauded directly at the pump, while tax authorities were deprived of billions in unpaid levies.

Broader Reach of Organized Crime

Agência Brasil reported that the federal police estimate criminal organizations in the fuel sector moved more than 23 billion reais in recent years. The São Paulo state prosecutor’s office, through Operation Carbono Oculto, placed the figure even higher, at more than 52 billion reais between 2020 and 2024. That operation highlighted irregular methanol imports and alleged links to the First Capital Command, or PCC, Brazil’s most powerful criminal syndicate. Reports in Brazilian media also described the use of fintech platforms and payment institutions as conduits for laundering, allowing flows to bypass traditional banking oversight.

A Turning Point or Another Cycle

The synchronized actions brought together more than one thousand federal agents and revenue inspectors across three states. Courts issued orders freezing bank accounts, seizing vehicles and real estate, and blocking access to company registries. Analysts note that this level of coordination is rare and may signal a broader government strategy aimed not only at street-level fraud but also at the financial architecture that sustains it.

Whether the crackdown leads to durable convictions is another matter. Past cases in the fuel sector have seen arrests and seizures followed by years of appeals and legal maneuvers that diluted enforcement. The mention of investment funds, fintechs, and irregular methanol imports suggests that the networks reach deep into the country’s financial and trade infrastructure.

A Call for Deeper Investigation

The events of this week should not be the end of the story. They should be the beginning of a sustained inquiry into the money trail that links Brazil’s fuel economy to global traders, financiers, and their intermediaries. The complexity of the schemes points to networks that stretch well beyond local operators. For that reason, I call for American regulators and prosecutors to launch their own investigation into Tricon Energy and its employees. The United States has the tools and jurisdiction to determine whether the methanol trade that feeds Brazil’s fuel mafia has been enabled from abroad. Anything less leaves consumers, investors, and democratic institutions exposed to the same corrosive system that has hollowed out a vital sector of the Brazilian economy.