In Rio de Janeiro, Brazil there is a recurrent wave of mass robberies known as “arrastoes,” or “dragnets”. An ‘arrastao’ is when a big group of people, usually teenagers and kids, from the favelas (ghetto) go to the beach and in a group rob everyone they can see. Since they are majority, sometimes people cannot do anything about it.

These mass robberies have prompted some Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners to react and vigilante groups have been formed to counter these attacks. Last week, in Rio about 30 men, most of them Jiu-Jitsu practitioners, conducted “raids” on buses connecting the suburbs (where the favela kids live) to the neighborhoods of Copacabana and Ipanema, in the southern area.

Rio bus being raided by Jiu-Jitsu practitioners

An example of Arrastoe in Ipanema beach, Rio de Janeiro:

The Jiu-Jitsu vigilante groups are not new. They have been around since the 1990’s back when things were even worse.

During the 90s in Rio de Janeiro, mostly in Ipanema and Copacabana, there were “arrastoes” happening every day and the police didn’t know how to control the situation. Few people know about it, but the Carlson Gracie team in Copacabana organized themselves in around 30 fighters and every weekend waited for the arrastao to start. You would see guys flying everywhere. After that, these collective robberies diminished consistently.

Some guys used whatever they could find to beat the criminals and it is said that some people may have died in the process, but the media never talked much about it otherwise the police would have to do something about it.

Members of the Carlson Gracie team vigilantes

There was also the Vale Tudo crew also known as ‘Pit Boys’, which would invade Funk parties and beat everyone up. It’s even said that when he was 16/17 years old Vitor Belfort showed his boxing for the first time and knocked out 8 guys, beating up a dangerous guy who swore revenge on him. After Vale-Tudo became MMA, this Pit Boy thing started to disappear, the fighters became good guys, the BJJ gyms became more disciplined and the rivalries started to disappear.

An old school student of Carlson Gracie, who goes by the anonymous nickname ‘Magrinho’ on Brazilian website  BJJForum.com.br, was talking about the old days:

When I was a kid I used to hear stories from the old school brown belts.

These Funk parties were crazy. I had an Iranian friend who came to train at Carlson’s and loved Funk music. I remember once near the favela of Rocinha the police decided to bother and take us to the Leblon police station. After being checked and released some “well known” names of the fighting world decided to find some trouble and invade a break in a few parties.

Back to the “Arrastao” thing. There was a crew called “Guardian angels” which had big names from all martial arts. Such as Esponja, Junim Moreno, Periquito, Playboy, Chupeta of Kickboxing, some of Luta livre and BJJ. Also Saporito, Sargento, Aramis, Marcelo Alonso, Marcos Flexa, Wallid Ismail, Carlao Barreto… A lot of guys. Even the Hell’s Angels joined at a certain point. Everyone wanted to beat up these guys who were doing the “arrastıes”, even some poliemen who trained.

They would organise themselves in groups of 5/8 guys and would be on standby just waiting for the word. As soon as a group that seemed to be of people from the Favela would show up, they would beat them up very bad.