Piruinha Bingo, in the North Zone of Rio, had a virtual card and bar service for gamblers

Agents from the Security and Intelligence Coordination of the Public Ministry of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ), prosecutors from the Specialized Action Group for Combating Organized Crime (Gaeco) and civil police officers from the Police Station for the Repression of Organized Criminal Actions and Special Inquiries (Draco-IE ), with the support of experts from the Carlos Éboli Institute of Criminalistics, seized this Tuesday, 81 slot machines, two machines for issuing virtual bingo cards, betting records, cell phones and more than R$10,000.

Most of the material was seized in a club, located in the Piedade neighborhood, in the North Zone of Rio, which according to the MPRJ, operated as one of two illegal casinos that would be operated by José Caruzzo Escafura, known as Piruinha, aged 94. Nothing was found at the other establishment. The places were closed. Responsible for the defense of José Caruzzo Escafura, lawyer Joaquim Queiroga Neto said that he will only comment on the case after officially informing himself about the matter.

The oldest active gambling banker in Rio, Piruinha admitted in the documentary “Vale o Escrito” that he has made a living from gambling for over 80 years and is the father of 19 children. José Caruzzo Escafura explores the game in areas such as Abolição, Cascadura and Madureira. He was one of the targets of Operation Bancarrota, launched by the MPRJ, this Tuesday, to execute 14 search and seizure warrants issued by the Court of Justice at addresses of individuals and legal entities linked to the exploitation of gambling and hunting machines. -nickels.

At the Club alone, which was protected by a wall of almost two meters and did not have any type of facade, the agents seized 68 slot machines, several bingo cards, two machines capable of issuing virtual cards of the same game and a total of R$ 10,982. The establishment also had a room measuring approximately one hundred square meters, which was equipped with round tables, chairs and screens.

According to the police, at the scene, bettors were watching the number draws. They could also choose between opting for physical or virtual cards and had a bar service available. Five people who were at the club were arrested and taken to give a statement at Draco. Slot machines that were installed in bars in the neighborhoods of Abolição, Engenho Novo, Bento Ribeiro, Jacarepaguá, Realengo, Madureira, Cascadura, Brás de Pina and Cavalcanti were also seized. According to prosecutor Fábio Corrêa, coordinator of Gaeco/MPRJ, the seized material will strengthen a criminal investigation procedure that investigates Piruinha for the exploitation of gambling.

— Today’s action is an obvious and intermediate phase of the investigation. The material collected today, especially cell phones and documents, will be analyzed and will be essential to help understand the current scenario in the exploitation of these illicit businesses in the region — said the Gaeco coordinator.

All seized slot machines will have components such as slot machines and motherboards removed and examined by experts from the Carlos Éboli Criminalistics Institute (ICCE). Expertise must confirm that the machines are “rigged”, that is, programmed so that most of the time they make the bettor lose the amount bet. After the examination, they will be available to the courts until they are destroyed by court decision.

Last week, Piruinha was acquitted of being responsible for the death of car dealer Natalino José Nascimento Espínola. In addition to the offender, his daughter, Monalizza Neves Escafura, and military police officer Jeckson Lima Pereira were also tried for the crime. The two were also acquitted by the jury. With the decision, the preventive arrests of Piruinha and her daughter were revoked. The court also overturned precautionary measures imposed on the three defendants, such as the seizure of assets and valuables.

Trader Natalino José, known as Neto, was killed on July 23, 2021, in Vila Valqueire, in the West Zone of Rio. According to the Public Ministry of Rio (MPRJ), in the complaint, the crime was motivated by a debt of R $500,000 that he would have with the offender and his daughter.

According to the MPRJ, the victim and Monalizza were partners in a venture that did not work out. The problem would have started when Neto influenced Escafura and Monalizza to invest money in “works through contracts entered into with construction companies; and such operation, much more than an investment, was a money laundering operation from the criminal organization’s illicit activities where the true operators and owners of the capital do not appear, but invest and profit through ‘oranges’ that return properties and declarable values ”. At trial, the case’s prosecutor argued that there was a lack of evidence of the defendants’ involvement in the crime and suggested that the defendants be acquitted.