Trials
Taking advantage of the attention of the media and public opinion during the Carnival of 1993, Castor gave a 5-minute speech angrily condemning the persecution of bicheiros in full Sambadrome. Three months later, judge Denise Frossard convicted Castor and 13 other major bicheiros (among them Capitão Guimarães, Luizinho Drummond, Antonio Petrus Kalil, alias Turcão, and Anísio Abraão David) to six years of prison for criminal association. Formally, 53 deaths were attributed to the group.". However, in the same year Castro obtained a habeas corpus and was released and by December 1996 the rest of the bicheiros were all back on the streets, granted parole or clemency.
On March 30, 1994, Castor suffered a new mishap. Prosecutor Biscaia launched a new action against the jogo do bicho in Rio de Janeiro, bursting the stronghold of Castor in Bangu and seizing 17 cash books, 140 account books, and 166 computer disks. He is cited as having said, right after his bunker was busted, "What police is this?". Castor de Andrade was one of the first bicheiros that started bribing policemen, and policemen from all police forces received money from him. A special screened unit of the BOPE (Special Police Operations Battalion), the special forces of the Military Police of Rio de Janeiro State, was used during the operation against Castor.
The police investigations revealed that big names had been profiting from the illegal activities of bicho's Mafia. Among them, former president Fernando Collor de Mello, Rio governor Nilo Batista, São Paulo mayor Paulo Maluf, Rio mayor Cesar Maia, seven entrepreneurs, three judges, 12 congressmen and seven assemblymen, 25 police commissioners and 100 police officers. According to prosecutor Antônio Carlos Biscaia, "the Public Ministry of Rio de Janeiro investigated their involvement in more than 130 homicides and verified the corruption scheme centralized and led by Castor de Andrade, who recorded the bribes for military and civil policemen, public servants, including those of the Public Ministry and Judiciary, and even well-known politicians who received financial help for their compromised political campaigns."
There were also suspicions that Castor and his people had a partnership with Colombian Cali Cartel. Preliminary findings showed Rio bicheiros responsible for transporting cocaine in Brazil and shipping it overseas. In Porto Seguro, Castor had set up a fishing company that was used for cocaine trafficking. He allegedly helped the Sicilian Mafioso Antonio Salamone to settle in Brazil. Castor gave him a cover job at Bangu Textiles, which he owned. Salamone became a naturalized Brazilian because of de Andrade’s influence.
Read more about this topic: Castor De Andrade, Biography
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