The Baep police battalion in Piracicaba, Brazil, has seen a staggering 263% increase in deaths resulting from police intervention in just one year, raising concerns among specialists.
The 10th Battalion of Special Police Actions (Baep) in Piracicaba, São Paulo, has recorded a significant rise in fatalities due to police interventions, becoming the second most lethal battalion in the state in 2025. The number of deaths increased from 11 in 2024 to 40 in 2025, amounting to a 263% rise. This surge places Baep behind only the Rondas Ostensivas Tobias de Aguiar (Rota) battalion in São Paulo, which reported 67 deaths last year. These alarming statistics have been provided by the Special Action Group for Public Safety (Gaesp), part of the São Paulo Public Ministry, which monitors police activities.
Experts in public safety, such as Rafael Rocha from the Sou da Paz Institute, have expressed serious concerns over this drastic increase, labeling it “completely abnormal.” Rocha's assessment highlights the substantial escalation in police-related fatalities, raising questions about the operational protocols of the police and the challenges they face within the regions they patrol. Such increases in police lethality often spark debates on the appropriate use of force, community policing, and the overall strategies employed by law enforcement agencies in Brazil.
In response to these alarming figures, the São Paulo State Secretary of Public Security (SSP) emphasized that assessing lethality in isolation does not provide a comprehensive view of the police's role in Piracicaba. The SSP pointed out that throughout 2025, over 20,454 arrests were made as part of routine actions, indicating that police operations are extensive and not solely defined by the fatalities reported. This statement suggests an intention to contextualize the police's actions within a broader framework of law enforcement and public safety efforts, even amidst the rising death toll.
