at that time many brazilians, generally without higher education or professional expertise, relocated from small towns and farms to large cities in the hopes of a better life, but as the larger cities were not economically ready to receive and support a significantly larger workforce, conditions became favorable to the development of illegal activities.

furthermore, the economic and oil crisis of the 1970's resulted in an unprecedented expansion of favelas, as the majority of brazilian population by then lived in cities and many faced the challenges of no stable income or lack of access to traditional housing.

low education, few employment opportunities, the proliferation of hardly accessible districts, and a stagnating economy were an unfortunate scenario where the incidence of small crime rose rapidly.