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March 13, 2019

Brazil: 2 Ex-Police Officers Arrested over Murder of Marielle Franco
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In Brazil, police have arrested two former police officers suspected of
murdering human rights activist and city councilmember Marielle Franco
last March. The drive-by shooting in downtown Rio de Janeiro also killed
her driver, Anderson Pedro Gomes. Ronnie Lessa is believed to have shot
Franco and her co-passengers, while Élcio Vieira de Queiroz drove the
pair's getaway car. After news broke of the arrest, a photo appearing to
show Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro with Queiroz circulated on
social media.

Franco, who was black and a vocal member of the LGBT community, was a
longtime critic of Brazil's police, who have been linked to hundreds of
killings and thousands of incidents of brutality in Rio's impoverished
favela neighborhoods. Mass demonstrations are planned for Thursday,
marking the first anniversary of Franco's death.


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