ICE Busts Convicted Brazilian Drug Fugitive ‘Zé Neto’ in Hyannis
HYANNIS, MASSACHUSETTS — Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Boston arrested José Paula de Souza Neto, known as “Zé Neto,” an illegal alien and foreign fugitive from Brazil, during operations in Hyannis on June 10.
According to an official statement released by ICE Boston, Brazilian authorities had issued an arrest warrant for Neto following his conviction for drug trafficking and association for drug trafficking.
Local sources told Hyannis News the arrest took place around 8 a.m. during a traffic stop on Charles Street.
De Souza Neto had been on the run after failing to return to prison following a COVID-19-era house arrest. He had received a final conviction in Brazil for drug trafficking and association for drug trafficking before fleeing the country and becoming an international fugitive, according to Brazilian authorities and translated news reports.
In January 2026, the Civil Police of Minas Gerais issued wanted posters for Neto and two other men from the Caratinga region as part of a public fugitive-hunt campaign. Brazilian authorities said the widespread media and social-media sharing of the posters generated tips that helped locate him in the United States.
Roughly five months after the wanted posters were issued in January, de Souza Neto was arrested on Cape Cod in Hyannis.
With de Souza Neto now in custody, one of the main targets of the Caratinga fugitive operation is no longer considered an international fugitive. The two other men named in the January wanted posters — Juan Pablo Mendes Nascimento and Guilherme Henrique de Oliveira, known as “Coca-Cola” — remain at large.
Brazilian authorities said that further legal procedures, including any potential extradition, will be handled by the appropriate entities. The case is now under joint monitoring by Brazilian and U.S. officials. No additional details have been released about the circumstances of the traffic stop or the status of any extradition proceedings.
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