Brazil thieves grab US$1 million in cellphones from airport: report

[RIO DE JANEIRO] Brazilian thieves disguised as workers made off with a shipment of cellphones worth US$1 million from Rio de Janeiro's international airport, Globo television reported Wednesday.

Globo broadcast what it said was security video footage of the men, wearing the uniforms usually used by cargo area employees, as they entered the area in Galeo International Airport on Sunday.

The gang, which was armed, was then believed to have hidden the shipment of Samsung Galaxy S9 phones in the Mare, a huge, nearby Rio favela, or impoverished community, the report said.

"The three criminals easily got into the cargo terminal and stole a million dollars' worth of latest generation cellphones," Globo quoted Venancio Moura, head of security for the Rio transport businesses' union, as saying.

Police declined to comment on the reported incident, which would be only the latest in a near constant stream of brazen robberies by thieves targeting commercial cargos.

The most common targets are trucks, which are carjacked and forced to lawless favelas for pillaging.

AFP