A 2021 Copa Truck champion was arrested in Rio de Janeiro during a major operation targeting alleged organised crime and tax fraud linked to fuel firms. The arrest took place on Wednesday, November 11, in Barra da Tijuca as prosecutors from the Rio de Janeiro Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPRJ) carried out Operation Charon. The investigation also targets businessman Ricardo Andrade Magro, described by prosecutors as the alleged leader of the group. Authorities say companies connected to the alleged organisation have accumulated tax liabilities exceeding R$15 billion in Rio de Janeiro state, including about R$14 billion linked to the former Manguinhos refinery. Prosecutors allege the group used companies and financial structures to evade taxes, launder money and conceal assets. Investigators allege the scheme involved shell companies, investment funds, holding companies and offshore structures to move money and hide ownership. The probe points to alleged financial connections involving Delaware in the United States, the Bahamas and Malta, with investigators believing some funds were later returned to Brazil through investments and property purchases. Operation Charon included arrest warrants and search-and-seizure orders against people connected to the Refit group. Prosecutors have not publicly spelled out the specific role attributed to the truck driver, and his detention does not establish guilt. The investigation builds on earlier reporting that had included the racing driver in a separate suspected money laundering case involving fuel stations and alleged links to the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), but there is no indication he was convicted there or that it is directly connected to Operation Charon. Prosecutors say the businessman at the centre of the latest case has been wanted since May 2026, when Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court ordered preventive detention in a separate investigation known as Operation Sem Refino. The driver’s case is still being handled through ongoing judicial proceedings.