A video has emerged showing inmates celebrating a gang anniversary with a cocaine “cake” at a maximum-security prison.
The footage shows a table covered in lines of cocaine as prisoners gather to celebrate.
One inmate can be heard saying: “I’d like to thank all my brothers from the command’s network who have been supporting us and helping us fight for our cause, for our justice and for what is right.”
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The images emerged from the Jair Ferreira de Carvalho Penitentiary in Campo Grande, Brazil.
The prisoners were allegedly celebrating the 33rd “birthday” of the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) criminal gang.
The PCC was “born” on 31 August 1993, and this is not the first time footage has emerged of inmates celebrating the gang’s founding.
The State Agency for the Administration of the Prison System (Agepen) is working to identify the prisoners seen in the latest footage.
Some of those allegedly involved have already been identified and are facing disciplinary proceedings, as reported by Need To Know.
According to Agepen, the drugs seen in the footage were likely brought into the prison by drones.
It said in a statement: “To combat this practice, the Penal Police, together with the National Penal Force, has stepped up monitoring, resulting in 13 attempted drone deliveries being intercepted at the prison between 25 and 29 August.”
Eight inmates are believed to have founded the PCC during a football match at the Piranhão prison in Taubaté, which was known for housing prisoners convicted of high-profile crimes.
In the gang’s early days, its members said it had been created to “combat oppression within the São Paulo prison system”.
They also said it was intended “to avenge the deaths of the 111 prisoners” killed by police during the “Carandiru massacre” in São Paulo on 2 October 1992.
Agepen added: “Collective expressions of support for or references to criminal organisations may constitute a serious disciplinary offence, with possible consequences for prisoners’ sentences.”
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