Sonia Aparecida Rossi, known as “Maria do Pó,” is a Brazilian criminal who has remained a fugitive since 2006. According to the São Paulo Public Security Secretariat, she escaped from the Sant’Ana women’s prison in São Paulo in March of that year and remains wanted by authorities. The state’s official reward program lists Rossi as wanted in connection with drug-trafficking proceedings.
Rossi’s name became widely known in the late 1990s after authorities linked her to a major investigation in the Campinas region. In January 1999, she was arrested with approximately 340 kilograms of cocaine in Indaiatuba, São Paulo. Contemporary reports from Folha de S.Paulo stated that she was subsequently convicted of drug trafficking and later escaped from custody.
Her imprisonment did not end her legal history. Reports from 2006 stated that Rossi was serving a lengthy sentence when she escaped from the Penitenciária Feminina de Sant’Ana. She reportedly left the facility after mixing with a group of inmates who were working outside the prison buildings.
Over the following years, Rossi became a recurring name on lists of Brazil’s most wanted fugitives. UOL reported that her name was eventually included in Interpol’s Red Notice system in October 2018. More recent reporting has continued to identify her as a fugitive, with authorities maintaining efforts to locate her.
The allegations surrounding Rossi’s broader criminal history include claims of involvement in organized crime and the disappearance of cocaine previously held by authorities in Campinas. However, these allegations should be distinguished from the convictions established by Brazilian courts. Available official records confirm her status as a wanted fugitive and her previous conviction for drug trafficking.
Maria do Pó remains one of the best-known female fugitives associated with Brazil’s criminal-justice history. Her disappearance after escaping custody in 2006 has kept her name in Brazilian police records and media coverage for nearly two decades.
SOURCES
São Paulo Public Security Secretariat (SSP-SP)
SSP-SP — Information on Sonia Aparecida Rossi
Folha de S.Paulo
Folha — Federal Police arrest of Maria do Pó
UOL
UOL — Maria do Pó and Interpol
Agência O Globo / Imirante
Report on her 2006 escape
