Romulo da Costa Mattos Neto, 68 years old, one of the most wanted fugitives in the Federal District, was arrested in Belo Horizonte (MG) after 20 years of search. The arrest was made through a facial recognition camera at Praça Rio Branco, which identified Romulo, who had an aged appearance, white hair and beard, different from the photo released in police alerts. He was located in a residence in the Belo Horizonte region and taken away by police teams.
Romulo has seven convictions, with sentences that add up to 44 years, three months, and four days in prison, for robbery and extortion crimes committed between 2006 and 2018.
The arrest was the result of a joint action by the Federal Police (PF) and the Military Police of Minas Gerais (PMMG), who received information about Romulo’s presence in the region. During the approach, Romulo presented a false document in the name of another person and tried to pass himself off as the holder of the identification, but ended up confirming his true identity. He stated that he had serious health problems and said he might have prostate cancer.
The police reported that the suspect did not resist arrest and did not pose a risk to the military or third parties, so it was not necessary to use handcuffs.
Romulo was taken to the Plant Duty Police Station of the Civil Police of Minas Gerais and later forwarded to the Federal Police. Currently, four fugitives from the Federal District are on the most wanted list of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP).
The disclosure of the list aims to encourage the population to collaborate with information that helps locate the fugitives. The MJSP requests that complaints be made anonymously and that the name of the fugitive be mentioned as listed on the ministry’s website.
The capture of Romulo is an example of how technology can be used to locate fugitives. The use of facial recognition cameras has become increasingly common in police actions, allowing the identification of suspects in real-time. In addition, collaboration between the security forces of different states was fundamental for the arrest of Romulo, who had escaped from the Federal District almost 20 years ago.
Facial recognition and police are important tools in combating crime.
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