RIO DE JANEIRO -- Rio de Janeiro — already notorious for street muggings, corrupt politicians, ruthless militias and Kalashnikov-toting drug traffickers — has a new public enemy: plushies. Or, more specifically, the joystick-controlled claw machines that dispense them.

On Wednesday, Rio police conducted 16 raids targeting these machines, which are popular with children and adults alike. But authorities claim that claw machines deceive players, making them believe they are competing on skill when, in reality, they are games of pure chance. Similar to slot machines, they are illegal, according to police.

During the raids, officers confiscated claw machines, computers, tablets, mobile phones, a firearm, and, of course, cuddly companions. They are investigating whether organized crime syndicates are involved, as they already operate slot machines and a popular lottery known as “Animal Game” throughout the city. Police in Brazil's southern Santa Catarina state also carried out three search warrants as part of the same operation.

This marked the second police crackdown on claw machines, following a similar operation in May where officers seized 80 machines. Not only were these machines filled with fake plush toys, but an analysis of their software revealed that winning was only possible after a predetermined number of attempts. According to police, the machines manipulated the claw's strength using an electrical current, ensuring that it could hold onto a prize after a specific number of plays.

This programming is not disclosed to unsuspecting players, including children who might spend their allowance on what is essentially a gamble. Claw machines are commonly found in Rio's shopping malls, subway stations, supermarkets, arcades, and toy stores.

One of Rio's claw machine enthusiasts is Alessandra Libonnati, 41, who has been playing for almost 30 years. She remembers the excitement when claw machines first appeared in the city, as she had only seen them in movies. These days, she plays once a week, either alone or with friends at the mall who share her “unique” pastime.

She enjoys the thrill of low-investment games and, as she puts it, is a skilled claw machine player who has refined her techniques to maximize her wins, from analyzing the stuffed animal placement to carefully positioning the claw. She cherishes a manatee with jaguar spots that she won on a trip to the nation's capital with her friends.

“When I walk by a claw machine, I take a look to see if there’s a stuffed animal that makes it worth playing," she told The Associated Press. "Because it's not always worth it; sometimes it's clearly a waste of money.”

Claw machines may have been games of skill in decades past, but most modern machines have built-in programming allowing operators to predetermine their profitability, said Jeremy Hambly, a claw game enthusiast from the Milwaukee area. His ClawStruck YouTube channel shows how many different models work, he previously told the AP . He said odds should be posted prominently on machines for users to review.

Most U.S. states consider claw machines games of chance and specifically exempt them from gambling statutes, as long as they comply with certain rules specific to those states. According to industry experts, it’s in arcades’ best interests to have customers win. They say that’s the only way to keep them coming back.

But recently, it's been tough going for Rio's claw machine enthusiasts, Libonnati said. And she attributes that to changes made to the machines that didn't escape her discerning eye.

“The current machines are no good. The claws are weaker,” she wrote in a text message to a friend in April, reviewed by the AP.

"Amiga, yessssss!" her friend responded. "I went back to the machines where I always got (stuffed animals) lately and they're soooooo weak!”

Local online media outlet G1 coined the term “weak claw scam.”

The almost 13,000 stuffed animals police confiscated in their May operation were initially set to be destroyed, but a request from state lawmakers was granted by a local judge, who saved them from their fate. Instead, police donated the plushies to families who lost their homes in the massive floods of southern Rio Grande do Sul state, especially children in shelters.

The fate of the stuffed animals seized Wednesday was still undecided late in the day.

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Associated Press writer Bruce Shipkowski contributed to the report from Trenton, New Jersey.