← Away Days Podcast: Reporting from the Underbelly
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- [00:00]
Trey Farrow
This is an iHeart podcast.
- [00:04]
Jake Hanrahan
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Trey Farrow
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Trey Farrow
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Jake Hanrahan
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- [02:19]
Trey Farrow
You're listening to the Away Days podcast on the ground outside, reporting from the underbelly with me, Jake Hanrahan. To watch Away Days documentary entries, go to YouTube.com waydaystv this is part 2 Favela Government episode 1. This podcast is a production of H11 Studio and call Zone Media, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. I'm stood at the bottom of a long, winding road that leads uphill into the maze of Falette Fogotero, a sprawling favela under the control of Brazil's oldest gang. In the near distance, I can see the shantytown built up on top of itself. The tropical backdrop of the nearby mountains and valleys is peppered with misshapen blocks of DIY housing. Edges and right angles are bent skew with like a Dr. Seuss illustration. Each building is L linked by a spider's web of illegal power lines, all maintained by favela residents without permits. Here, at the bottom of the hill, there's a crossroads where favela motorbike taxis hang out. There are around two dozen young lads ready to take who or whatever they're told to up into the favela. They wear a mix of football shirts, flip flops and basketball shorts. They're looking at me as if to say, what the fuck are you doing here? This area is a no go zone for tourists, the government and the police. The whole area is run by a criminal organization known as RedCommand, or in Portuguese, Comando Vomelo CV. After months of negotiation between myself, a friend and a photographer originally from the favelas, one of the big CV bosses has given us permission to enter Falat Fogotero. Once you're up the hill and in the neighbourhood, CV is the de facto leader, leadership in every way possible. We're here to make a documentary to show what life is like in the favela when a gang takes on the role of a government. You can watch the documentary now at YouTube.com waydaystv a local lad is assisting us with a blessing from the gang. I dare say if he wasn't with us, we'd be robbed and sent on our way home already. But CV's word is solid here, so we're left alone. The local, who we'll call Carlos, hands a few notes to one of the motorbike riders and tells him something in Portuguese. The rider nods at me and pulls his bike up to the bottom of the hill. The other taxis watch on, grinning and whispering to each other. By now, they're all sat on the seats of their bikes and chatting about the gringos, me and my team. It's humid, noisy and everything smells like gasoline. Carlos signals to me we're ready to go. I approach the motorbike and climb on the back. The rider is perched over it and leans on the handlebars, naturally, as if they're part of his extended anatomy. He's made this trip a thousand times before, but probably never for some journalist from the uk. Falapogatero is not one of those media friendly favelas that YouTubers pay to create danger, slop Content Inside of this is the Wild west when it comes to rules, regulations, laws or safety. Carlos tells me the last time someone tried to film up there without permission, they were shot dead by the gang. He says it was a couple riding through on bikes with GoPros attached. This place is no joke. I let the rider know I'm ready and he pushes off the kickstand and revs the bike up the hill, moving fast through a series of alleyways, winding roads and half built streets. As we move up higher into the favela, a blur of residents and gang bangers whiz past. The road is battered with potholes and uneven tarmac. The bike bounces every few feet. There are no helmets for passengers, at least not for me, so I'm held on tight, hoping we don't crash into the 101. Different obstacles and sharp angles we zip past. After about five minutes we're fully up the hills and on an even plateau where the favela branches off into all different directions.
- [06:51]
Jake Hanrahan
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Trey Farrow
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Jake Hanrahan
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Jake Hanrahan
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Jake Hanrahan
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Trey Farrow
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Jake Hanrahan
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- [09:45]
Trey Farrow
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- [10:01]
Jake Hanrahan
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- [10:05]
Trey Farrow
To get started on your next building project. Visit mortonbuildings.com don't delay. Construction schedules are filling up fast, so now's the time to start planning your building project with Morton. That's MortonBuildings.com we're high up now. Inside the favela. I can see the city's tall buildings of the metro area in the distance from here, all glass and metal. Down there, Brazilians work their nine to fives, pay their bills and hang out on the beaches. Up here, it's illicit firearms, bricks of heroin and regular gang shootouts. Short motorbike taxi has transported me from one world to another. This is the favela. Carlos arrives on the back of another motorbike and guides us through a series of narrow alleyways. Here, the only thing you need to start building is cement. Over the years this has created a ghetto metropolis with random drain pipes, satellite dishes and stairs that lead to nowhere. Favela construction is unlike anything else. We move through to a small corner with three alleyways leading in all directions up a slope. CV graffiti is sprayed red on the walls. Piles of rubbish are gathered up along the side of the road. There's a small benched off area made of bricks and concrete. Here, three young men armed with semi automatic rifles are posted up chatting into their walkie talkies. The static melts in and out with indecipherable Portuguese chirping from the other end. The gang has this whole place on lock. An intricate system of radio signals and constant patrols has them in charge of all entrances to the neighborhoods they control. The young gunmen seem pretty chilled out, considering. We shake hands and one of them seems eager to chat. His name is chico. He's maybe 20 years old. He's stood in a pair of flip flops, a red basketball jersey and a camouflage balaclava. He's also holding a rifle almost as big as he is. Carlos explains to me that exactly where we're currently standing is is nicknamed the place where bullets fly. He could have told us this beforehand. Basically, this is a very hot intersection where gun battles regularly break out between either rival gangs or the police. Chico walks out into the junction and points to a large white building at the top of a hill in the distance. A huge blue wall protects it. It's surrounded by jungle foliage and what looks like a little tram moving in and out. Chico explains what it is.
- [12:46]
Jake Hanrahan
Snipers. Up there, there are police snipers. And from this direction, rival gangs come.
- [12:52]
Trey Farrow
Down to confront us at all times, day or night. These areas are guarded by men like Chico. We move off through the alleyways to find a safer place to talk. As we do, young children randomly show up to see why the gringos are here. They seem completely unfazed at the masked men with rifles hanging out on their corners. We climb over a small wall and into a sheltered alleyway that doubles as someone's outside patio. People look out from their windows, not really alarmed, just seeing what's going on. Chico seems as relaxed here as he did in the place where bullets fly. Me, I'm much happier to have some concrete between us and the police snipers with their barrels aimed over this neighborhood. Do you see yourselves as like the Security of this favela?
- [13:39]
Jake Hanrahan
Yeah, I think so. We're here to protect each other. We stop residents getting scammed by the government. If we're not in the community, the community is finished. We're out here. It's our choice. We stay strong. You know us drug dealers are the ones who help. Because the government is shit. Straight up. They steal everything. They're bad, we're not good. But we only kill our enemies. The media says we kill civilians, but we don't. We only kill other criminals. Criminals against criminals. CV isn't destroying anything in Rio de Janeiro. If CV didn't exist, what would happen to the favela residents? The police would come here, charge protection fees, humiliate people, disappear. People make curfews, not us. We leave them be. We even hold parties for the community.
- [14:30]
Trey Farrow
What's it like living here? What's it like growing up here? It looks to me like there's no presence from the government at all. What's it like?
- [14:38]
Jake Hanrahan
When I was young, all I did was play football. I followed a different path. But when the police entered the community here, a lot of things went to ruin. My brother entered the gang life, so I followed. Back then, I had a dream to get out of this place. But the police destroyed my life when they killed my brother. He was shot in the back. Then the cops executed him close up. From then on, I said to myself, they'll only get rid of me by death. So after that, I fought and fought.
- [15:07]
Trey Farrow
I'm sorry to hear that, bro.
- [15:10]
Jake Hanrahan
None of this will change our lives any day. We could die. If God puts it in my heart to leave, then I'll leave.
- [15:18]
Trey Farrow
As nice as that sentiment is, very rarely does anyone exit the life of a favela gang member by anything other than death. CV's presence is felt far and wide across Brazil. The gang has gained over 25,000 members in the 40 years they've been active. It all began in Brazil in the 1970s. A U. S backed military dictatorship controlled the country with an iron fist. Extrajudicial killings, forced disappearances, mass censorship. Armed rebels rose up and began fighting back. Police were killed and riots broke out. Before long, Rio's prisons were full of battle hardened leftist guerrillas. Specifically at the Candido Mendez Penal colony. There, militants shared cells with local criminals who'd also been locked up by the junta. All under the same roof, all facing abuse in the prison. The two groups joined forces to protect themselves. Rebel fighters in league with street criminals. It was an effective alliance that gave birth to CV. Brazil's military junta ruled from 1964 to 1985. In that time, CV spread like wildfire. They were highly active inside and outside prison. They got into drug trafficking and became a highly violent organization. By the end of the dictatorship, CV controlled around 70% of the drug trade in Rio and became a serious problem for the state. In the favelas, though, CV became the state. These shanty towns, initially built by former slaves in the 1800s, have long been abandoned by the government. And so a mix of violence, intimidation and genuine community support led CV to become the de facto of authority of their favelas. This meant they had to keep the police out. In Brazil, the security forces have been corrupt for a long time. They're often involved in organized crime themselves and are the natural enemy of the countless different gangs of Brazil. Now, in 2025, CV is a huge international criminal enterprise. They're involved in drug trafficking, weapons dealing, armed robbery, kidnap to order, murder for hire, money laundering, you name it. Carlos takes us deeper into the favela. We move sideways through an alleyway so narrow I think I'd almost get stuck if I walked forwards. The walls are sloped at different angles. The further we move along, CV graffiti is sprayed up every six feet or so. Eventually, we emerge at another intersection where a dozen or so CV gang members are gathered on a corner. They're all armed with a mix of long barrel rifles, Uzis and pistols. They move in and out of the area on motorbikes, a lot nicer than the ones we rode up in with the taxi. Due to the layout of the favela and CVs control of it, the gang is able to do business completely out in the open. They're all cutting up weed into small cling film squares and combining blocks of what I think is wrapped coke into kilos with duct tape. The boss of this group, a guy nicknamed no Joke Fat Sexy, is watching over the operation with an M16 rifle slinged over his shoulder. He's on his phone organizing. Music is playing from a Bluetooth speaker and the gang members are pouring out drinks for each other. It's just business as usual. About 10ft across the road from the open air drug emporium is a small local butcher's. A few residents are queued up, waiting to buy meat. Children move in and out of the area. I head over to the gang and Carlos introduces me to everyone. I shake hands with the gunmen and drug manufacturers, and whilst they seem a little confused, they're generally pretty friendly. They seem baffled as to why we'd come all the way from England to Falat Fogartero. Even when we explain that we're making a documentary, we hang out for a while and the gangbangers start to show off their guns. These are heavy duty firearms, either stolen from rival gangs and police or smuggled into Brazil from the us, Paraguay and Venezuela. Randomly. One of the gang members puts an M16 rifle in my hands. Whilst generally I believe in gun rights and am definitely pro firearm, I am not comfortable holding a gun whilst out in the field reporting. That's not my role. I'm a journalist and never a combatant. I look around for someone to hand the firearm off to as the CV gang members laugh at my awkwardness. So we've turned up a seller spot where they're all selling various drugs. For some reason, I've just been handed this rifle. I don't really know what to do now. You want this? Someone take it, man. Quickly. One of the guys takes the gun away from me and I thank him. He hands me a little plastic cup and pours me a drink of Sprite. At his feet he has a bag of drugs the size of a pillow, all wrapped in tape and plastic. If I had to guess, I'd say it's some kind of heroin precursor or just a huge sack of opium. Even organised into semi autonomous cells, SIVI is active in drug trafficking all over the place. From here in Rio to the Paraguay border, the Amazon region and beyond, they're constantly fighting rival gangs for control of the drug trade. As we sit around drinking Sprite, watching gang members compare guns, I notice two young boys across the street. They're both leaned up against the wall, intently watching the scene in front of them. Drugs, guns, gang life. They look not even 10 years old yet. Before I can think about it too much, the sound of a gunshot in the near distance breaks the jovial atmosphere. Then another, and another. There's some kind of shootout. The ringleader, Fat Sexy, quickly jumps on his motorbike and zooms off down the road with a walkie talkie. The others wrap up the drugs and the jeep arrives out of nowhere. Fat Sexy returns and starts telling the others to go get the rifles. Three or four of the CV foot soldiers hop on bikes and race off, presumably to get the other rifles. The scene is tense and erratic, but at the same time somehow controlled. It's clear that the gang members deal with this regularly and know what to do. For the past year, CB has been moving on the turf of their rivals. Gun battles break out often. Just as I'm sat on a Wall, observing the madness, wondering if we'll have to run for cover soon. A CV foot soldier in a balaclava moves next to to me and loads up his Kalashnikov with a DIY extended magazine, two mags welded together at each end. If it doesn't jam, he can probably shoot 60 rounds without having to reload. He gestures for me to follow him, ushering us away from what looks to be a mobilization of CV versus whoever it is shooting nearby. They don't want us getting in the way of a gang shootout. Rio de Janeiro is gripped by a violent struggle between many different gangs. Each of them fights for control of drug routes and territory in the cities. Sprawling favelas in Rio, CV is the most notorious and most powerful. The gang controls the majority of the drug trade here. Recently, a serious conflict broke out between them and another gang called First Capital Commander, or PCC. PCC's main turf is the city of Sao Paulo, over 200 miles away from Rio. Much like CV, though, they're active all over the country. CV and PCC had a truce recently, but it's fallen apart spectacularly in a storm of deadly violence. Another major criminal faction in Brazil is pure third command, or TCP. Relatively, they're a lot newer than CV, forming in the early 2000s after splitting from a previous larger criminal group over various disagreements. TCP is a whole other story in itself. They fused brutal gang violence with extreme religious Pentecostalism, Perhaps an away days for another time. Another serious gang in the Rio area is very Friends of Friends or amigos dos amigos, ADA. These guys formed in 1998, coming together as defectors of CV. They split off and formed their own gang. ADA has carved out its own territory in parts of the north and west zones of Rio, including Roquina, one of Rio's most famous favelas. ADA is enemies with both CV and tcp. The three gangs are all sporadically at war with each other. Complicating this situation even further are the criminal militias. They're different to the gangs in that they're paramilitary groups made up of ex police, soldiers, and even firefighters. We'll talk about them a lot more later on.
- [24:49]
Jake Hanrahan
Hey, it's Ryan Seacrest for Albertsons and Safeway. It's Oral Care Month, which means you can earn four times points on all your favorite oral care brands now through July 15. Shop in store or online for items like Colgate Toothpaste, Listerine Mouthwash, Crest Mouthwash or toothpaste. Sensodyne Toothpaste. Hello. Toothpaste or Gum flossers and earn four times points. Points can be redeemed for future discounts on gas or groceries. Offer ends July 15. Restrictions apply. Offers may vary. Visit albertsons or safeway.com for more details.
- [25:20]
Trey Farrow
People choose Morton Buildings to build a.
- [25:22]
Jake Hanrahan
Variety of buildings for their property any.
- [25:24]
Trey Farrow
Time of year because they know Morton.
- [25:26]
Jake Hanrahan
Buildings are built stronger, last longer and look better.
- [25:30]
Trey Farrow
If you need a garage, a stall barn or a storage building for an rv, boat or other vehicles, a shop for your farm hobbies or car restoration projects or anything in between, Morton can.
- [25:41]
Jake Hanrahan
Create a building for you that's attractive.
- [25:42]
Trey Farrow
Easy to maintain and dependable enough to.
- [25:44]
Jake Hanrahan
Stand the test of time.
- [25:46]
Trey Farrow
Just visit MortonBuildings.com today to find out more. They use quality materials and expert craftsmen with an industry leading warranty to ensure.
- [25:55]
Jake Hanrahan
Your structure is enjoyed by generations to come.
- [25:58]
Trey Farrow
Morton buildings is 100% employee owned with thousands of satisfied customers.
- [26:03]
Jake Hanrahan
That means they're the industry leader you can trust to get started on your next building project.
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Trey Farrow
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Jake Hanrahan
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- [27:17]
Trey Farrow
21 + terms and conditions apply. The CV gang member with the two Welded Together magazines quickly brings us up a hill out the way of where the gunshots were ringing out. He tells us he goes by the name FT Simple. We pass through a small neighborhood where four young girls are hanging out, sat on a step as if nothing has happened. They're all dressed in different pink outfits and probably range in age from 7 to about 10. They're incredibly cute. As we move past them, they seem totally oblivious to ft, who is casually walking by, holding his rifle and wearing a dark balaclava. It's midday. I wave at the young girls and they wave back and begin to giggle. Hello. They remind me of some of my own family back home. They're all smiles. The sadness of this, of course, is that they're completely used to gun battles and gang members. There's no way they didn't hear the commotion down the road, but for them, I guess it's just another day. As with the rest of the poverty in the favela, the children here are hit hard. Due to decades of inequality, neglect from the government and constant violence, the situation has become an ongoing crisis amongst the children here. There's malnutrition, poor sanitation and limited access to health care and education. Schooling in the favelas is very sporadic, to say the least. They have barely any money and very high dropout rates. Some kids are pulled into gang activity simply to survive. Gangs offer money, food and a sense of belonging. Others are sadly victims of violent police raids or crossfire when gang battles break out like we just saw. What's more, basic services like clean water, rubbish collection and even electricity are often inconsistent. This instability has severe impact on mental health and development. Those most ill equipped to deal with such hardships are, of course, the children. Wow. CV2FT leads us to a high point where there's an open square, two concrete benches and a concrete table that has a chessboard crudely built into it. This area offers an incredible view of the sprawling favelas all around us. As far as the eye can see, there are makeshift buildings that are meant to last forever. The shanty towns cover every hill and valley for miles and miles around. It hits me. This is what the gangs are fighting for. Control of a never ending concrete fortress. FT watches over it like a proud homeowner. Whilst it might seem ridiculous to some if you grow up here and you're in a gang, controlling your turf is everything. Dozens and dozens of these young gang members are killed every month trying to maintain their monopoly. To do so gives you the spoiled fruits the domination of the favela has to offer. Like some kind of favela real estate agent, FT proudly describes the demographic of the area here is the same gang as over there. Here we are. CV over there is the same faction, but another favela over there. They have a Different, boss. To us, it's divided. Here is Farrat Fogartero, where we are. Over there is Moro dos Prazeres and down there is the border. Once to leap divides the two favelas. This yours? Yes, this is Falet. What's it like living here and growing up all in this favela? Do you ever get to leave or you just here all the time? Man, I stay in the favela a lot. I moved here very young. Those of us raised here have few opportunities in life. That's why I started doing all this. It's normal for us seeing all this since a young age. In the favela, even if I'm not on lookout or not working, I'm always with my friends. 247 on our spot. We're always waiting for the unexpected to happen. We're always ready, always waiting for it. It's our life, day to day. If you didn't have to be here doing this, what would you prefer to do? Oh, I'd be a musician. A musician. I tried. In a different moment in my life, I dedicated myself to it. I left crime for a while to apply myself. I didn't get far. Maybe I wasn't patient enough. In the end I came back. I ended up here. As FT explains his lost dreams of becoming a musician, I can see a deep sadness in his eyes, albeit through the slit of his balaclava. He's in his 20s and has been a member of CV for a long time. Unfortunately, FT is no doubt a killer, and I'm not excusing random acts of gang violence. But for a moment, you can almost see an innocent side of ft, deep down in his soul when he talks about his forgotten ambitions. Just like anyone else, he once had dreams and desires far bigger than the life he's living now. And to make it out of the favela as a famous musician is in no way a pipe dream in Brazil either. Many have done so. Brazil has produced a wave of talented rappers who came up amongst the brutality of the favelas. One of the most famous is Sabotage, a Sao Paulo born rapper who grew up in the harsh gang communities of Zona Sul. His songs talk about favela life and social inequality. Sadly, he was murdered in 2003. Another major name is Emecida, who also grew up on the fringes of Sao Paulo. He's built his own record label and gained international recognition performing in Europe and the us. His music tackles racism, poverty and Brazil's huge class divide. There are many other examples. It's definitely possible to get out of the favela using music as the vessel. It is, though, incredibly unlikely and very hard for ft. Though he didn't quite make it, he's now stuck as a drug dealer in the trenches of Falat Fogatero. There's no doubt a lot of lost talent in Brazil's favelas. Eventually we say our goodbyes to FT and wander off through the favela. One thing that strikes me is the huge number of children running around playing and having fun. The contrast is impossible not to notice. For every CV gang member posted up with a rifle, there seems to be a dozen or so children running past him on the way to play out with their friends. There's something beautiful about the innocence of the children growing up amidst the chaos of Fallout Fogatero. No doubt more than a few times they've been kept up at night to the sound of gunfire. Clashes here can last for hours, with back and forth shootings between CV and police or rival gangs. If it's not that, it might be military helicopters overhead gathering intel for an upcoming raid. There's even been explosives used in favela battles. This is in no way a safe environment for a child, but it's their reality. The government does almost nothing to provide for the families here. Most of the safeguarding, if any, is done by NGOs who are allowed in by the gangs. It's a serious problem. There is, however, another outlet for the children of Falet Fogotero, one that was actually built by the gangs and is run by a man whose own father was killed by them. Next week we'll hear about Boa Safra Team Gym, a place worth its weight in gold. You've been listening to the Away Days podcast. Next week it's Part two, Episode two. To watch independent Away Days documentaries, subscribe to our channel@YouTube.com waydaystv Yday's podcast is a production of H11 Studio for Callzone Media, reporting producing, writing, editing and research by me, Jake Hanrahan co producing by Sophie Lichterman music by Sam Black and in this episode, Diamondstein Sound mix by Splicing Block Photography by Johnny Pickup and Louis Hollis Graphic design by Laura Adamson and Casey Highfield.
- [36:17]
Jake Hanrahan
This podcast is supported by BetterHelp, offering licensed therapists you can connect with via video phone or chat. Here's BetterHelp head of clinical Operations Hesu Jo discussing who can benefit from therapy. I think a lot of people think that you're supposed to be going to therapy once you're like having panic attacks every day. But before you get to that point, I think once you start even noticing that you feel a little bit off and you can't maintain this harmony that you once had in relationships. That could be a sign that maybe you want to go talk to somebody. There's always a benefit in talking to someone because we can all benefit from improved insight about ourselves and who we are and how we behave with other people. So if you're human, that's like a good indicator that you could benefit from talking to somebody. Find out if therapy is right for you. Visit betterhelp.com today. That's betterhelp.com oral health goes beyond just aesthetics. It's deeply connected to your general health and well being. That's why preventing oral health problems before they start is so important. When you use the Colgate Total Active Prevention System, you're not just helping to prevent oral health problems like cavities and gingivitis, you're laying the groundwork for overall wellness. Colgate Total's three product routine includes a reformulated toothpaste, an innovative toothbrush, and a refreshing antibacterial mouthwash that all support a healthy mouth. In fact, the three products were designed to work together to be 15 times more effective at reducing bacteria buildup in six weeks starting from week one compared to a non antibacterial fluoride toothpaste and flat trimmed toothbrush. Take control of your oral health and get the Colgate Total Active Prevention System today so you can be dentist ready. Visit shop.colgate.com Total Are you still quoting 30 year old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days? Do you think Discover isn't widely accepted? If this sounds like you, you're stuck in the past. Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide and every time you make a purchase with your card, you automatically earn cash back. Welcome to the now it pays to Discover. Learn more@discover.com credit card Based on the February 2024 Nielsen report, Dietz and Watson's been making meats and cheeses the right way since forever. What's that mean? It means never cutting corners. Ever. It means cooking, not processing. It means our Virginia brand ham that's cooked to perfection, then twice baked to layer the flavors. It takes more time, but you can taste the difference. We come to work every day to do it the right way, even if it's the hard way. Because if it's not right for us, it's not right for you. Dietz and Watson It's a family thing since 1939.
- [39:04]
Trey Farrow
This is an iHeart podcast.