SUMMARY

From 2007 until 2016, the state of Maranhão saw Bonde dos 40 and PCM behind a rising homicide rate. Yet, this figure changed in 2016 after the rupture between Comando Vermelho and PCC. Following the split, both gangs formed alliances with local criminal organizations across the country, which resulted in bloodshed across Brazil, particularly in the North and Northeastern regions.

Until 2016, Bonde dos 40 maintained a hostile stance towards PCC, as the latter was considered a supporter of PCM. Nevertheless, PCM was severely weakened after internal disputes, repeated attacks from rivals, and arrests carried out by the police damaged its structure. Many of its members then sought refuge under Comando Vermelho’s ranks or joined other gangs. As a result of this erosion, PCM was disbanded in 2017, while Comando Vermelho grew stronger in Maranhão.

In the meantime, in mid-2017, Bonde dos 40 partnered with one of Comando Vermelho’s main rivals, Amigos dos Amigos, a then-ally of PCC. These shifts culminated in an unexpected alliance between Bonde dos 40 and PCC that lasted from 2017 until 2019 and aimed at countering Comando Vermelho in Maranhão.

However, the relationship between Bonde dos 40 and PCC was characterized by mistrust, as PCC had supported PCM in the past. The levels of mistrust stirred internal fractions within both groups, which ultimately led to their split in 2019. As a result, the two gangs started battling each other in a bloody war over drug routes, territories, and consumer markets in parts of the states of Maranhão and the Piauí.

The non-state conflict between Bonde dos 40 and PCC was first included in UCDP data in 2022 when violent clashes flared up in the state, resulting in over 25 deaths.