PF arrests three suspects of ordering the murder of Marielle Franco

The Federal Police launched Operation Murder Inc. this Sunday morning (24/3), which arrested three suspects of being responsible for the murder of councilor Marielle Franco, who was from PSOL-RJ. The crime took place in March 2018.

According to information from press vehicles such as TV Globothe prisoners are federal deputy Chiquinho Brazão (União Brasil-RJ), his brother, Domingos Brazão, who is a counselor at the Rio de Janeiro Court of Auditors, and the former head of the Rio Civil Police, Rivaldo Barbosa.

The portal UOL found that the Brazão brothers were arrested on suspicion of being “intellectual authors of the homicide crimes”. Rivaldo, according to the same portal, was arrested on suspicion of obstruction of justice.

According to the PF, in addition to the three preventive arrest warrants, 12 search and seizure warrants are being served, issued by the Federal Supreme Court, all in the city of Rio de Janeiro-RJ.

This Sunday’s action also has the support of the State Secretariat of Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro and the National Secretariat of Penal Policies, of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security.

According to the portal’s investigation G1, the operation was launched this Sunday to surprise the targets. This is because information from Police intelligence indicated that they would be on alert since the Federal Supreme Court approved the plea bargain of former military police officer Ronnie Lessa, arrested since 2019 and accused of being one of the perpetrators of the crime.

This Sunday’s operation is based on Lessa’s statements in the collaboration agreement. The former PM would have identified who ordered the murder and also indicated the motivation for the crime.

Former head of the Civil Police received Marielle’s family

The arrest of Rivaldo Barbosa, former head of the Civil Police, draws attention. He had assumed the position of director of the institution the day before the crime, on March 13, 2018.

This Sunday, in a publication on X, the current president of Embratur and former federal deputy, Marcelo Freixo, who has always been very close to Marielle, highlighted that Rivaldo even received the councilwoman’s family.

“It was Rivaldo Barbosa that I called when I found out about the murder of Marielle and Anderson and was heading to the scene of the crime. He was head of the Civil Police and received the families the next day with me. Now Rivaldo is in prison for having acted to protect those who ordered the crime, preventing the investigations from progressing. This says a lot about Rio de Janeiro.”, wrote Freixo.

In an interview with Globo News This Sunday morning, Marielle Franco’s mother, Marinete Silva, highlighted that the biggest surprise was Rivaldo’s arrest, as he had a trusting relationship with the family.

Brazão Brothers

In recent days, speculation has increased about the alleged involvement of the brothers Domingos and Chiquinho Brazão in the case. Especially after the case ended up in the Federal Supreme Court, due to the involvement of an authority with privileged jurisdiction.

The two are politicians with a long history in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Historically, the family has an electoral stronghold in Jacarepaguá, in the West Zone of Rio, a region known for militia activity.

The portal G1 remember that Domingos was elected to public office for the first time in 1996, when he took a seat in the Rio City Council. He was then a state deputy between 1999 and 2015, the year in which he was elected in the Rio de Janeiro Assembly to hold the position advisor to the Court of Auditors.

His brother, federal deputy João Francisco Inácio Brazão (União Brasil), Chiquinho Brazão, is 62 years old and was a councilor in the Rio de Janeiro Chamber for 12 years. He was in office even during the first 2 years of Marielle’s term, between 2016 and March 2018, when she was murdered.

Chiquinho arrived at the Federal Chamber in 2018, elected by Avante. He was re-elected in 2022, already in União Brasil.

Prisoners must be taken to Brasília

According to information provided by the GloboNewsthe prisoners must be heard today at the Federal Police headquarters, in Rio de Janeiro, and transferred shortly thereafter to Brasília.

The Minister of Justice, Ricardo Lewadowski, is expected to hold a press conference in the early afternoon to talk about the matter.

Motivation of the crime

According to the portal G1, Federal Police investigators are still working to determine the motives behind Marielle Franco’s murder.

So far, the information would be that the crime would be linked to the territorial expansion of the militia in Rio de Janeiro.