(May 30, 2018) On May 17, 2018, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office (Ministério Público Federal, MPF) indicted (denunciou) 11 Brazilian citizens for the formation of a criminal organization and promotion of the terrorist group Islamic State. (MPF Denuncia 11 Brasileiros por Promover Estado Islâmico, ISTO E (May 17, 2018).)
According to the newspaper O Estado de São Paulo, which published the news on May 17, 2018, the indictment says that the Brazilians tried to recruit jihadists to fight in Syria and discussed attacks in Brazil. (Id.) The indictment was based on the findings of a confidential Federal Police investigation that included the interception of conversations and messages in applications and social networks. (Id.) The investigations began in November 2016 when Spanish authorities notified the Brazilian authorities that cell phone numbers from Brazil appeared in WhatsApp groups suspected of “promoting, organizing or integrating” the Islamic State. (Id.)