The moment when two men in hoods got out of a car with assault rifles and started shooting near the airport terminal was caught on a security camera.
Gritzbach, a former PCC member, dropped his bag and tried to run away, but was shot multiple times and died on the spot.
Cryptocurrency expert Gritzbach told officials how he helped the group launder millions of dollars.
Brazilian media reports indicate he was once considered a key player in the gang’s operation.
As part of the plea deal, Gritzbach promised to help investigators find other participants and turn over documents.
In return, the São Paulo prosecutor’s office is said to have offered Gritzbach a pardon and a reduced sentence for money laundering.
The PCC was created in the early 1990s and has become one of Brazil’s most feared drug gangs. Its members, however, are not limited to Latin America.
Last year, a report by Portugal’s security services alone said the group had 1,000 associates in the European country’s capital, Lisbon.
The São Paulo Organized Crime Task Force estimated in 2023 that the PCC was earning almost $1 billion (£773,000) from the international cocaine trade.
