Brazil's Federal Police launched Operation Little Bag on Thursday (27) to dismantle an interstate drug trafficking network based in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. Federal agents executed four preventive arrest warrants and multiple search and seizure orders in the municipalities of Dourados and Itaporã. A state court also ordered the freezing and seizure of bank accounts, vehicles, and real estate assets valued at over R$ 7 million ($1.3 million) linked to the suspects.

According to investigators, the inquiry began in 2025 after several large shipments of marijuana, valued at more than R$ 4 million, were intercepted along federal highways. Tracing the transport routes and logistical support revealed an organized cell operating from Mato Grosso do Sul that regularly supplied illicit distribution hubs in the Southeast and South regions of Brazil.

The Federal Police stated that the court orders aim to gather financial records, digital devices, and physical evidence to confirm or rule out the individual involvement of each suspect. Under Brazilian law, the suspects benefit from the presumption of innocence throughout the investigative phase. The identities of the targets have not been released due to court secrecy, and legal representatives for the suspects have not yet issued statements.

The seized equipment and documents will now undergo forensic examination by federal analysts. The suspects remain in preventive custody and will give formal statements to police investigators before the case file is delivered to public prosecutors, who will decide whether to file formal criminal charges before the Dourados criminal court.