Police arrest suspect in connection with the death of a battalion commander.
The Military Police (Méier) arrested tonight (30), in the Lins Complex, Richard Soares Faustino, 24 years old, suspected of being one of the criminals who participated in the death of Colonel Luiz Gustavo Teixeira, last Thursday (26); the officer was murdered when returning from a change of command ceremony at the Leblon battalion, south of Rio
Brazil Agency - The 3rd Battalion of the Military Police (Méier) arrested tonight (30), in the Lins Complex, Richard Soares Faustino, 24 years old, suspected of being one of the criminals who participated in death of Colonel Luiz Gustavo Teixeira, last Thursday (26). Richard is being taken to the Capital Homicide Police Station in Barra da Tijuca.
The officer was murdered while returning from a change-of-command ceremony at the battalion in Leblon, in the southern zone of Rio. The police vehicle was unmarked and was being driven by Corporal Nei Vilar Filho. When stopped at a traffic light at the intersection of Rua Lins de Vasconcelos and Aquidabã, in the Lins neighborhood, four criminals in a stolen car began a robbery spree. The military vehicle was right behind them, and the criminals, upon exiting their vehicle, noticed that the colonel was in uniform.
The four men then fired dozens of shots that hit the police car, and one of the shots struck Teixeira in the chest. The corporal reacted and reportedly hit him. Matheus do Espírito Santo Severiano22 years old, identified as one of the men with whom he exchanged gunfire. Nei Vilar Filho was wounded in the leg, but is out of danger. The four men fled.
Richard was identified by neighborhood security cameras and by residents who recorded the crime scenes. The Disque Denúncia's Wanted Portal released a poster last Friday (27) offering a reward of R$ 5 for information leading to the arrest of Matheus do Espírito Santo Severiano.
Protest
Today, in the early afternoon, the wife and two children of Colonel Teixeira, along with family and friends from the Méier neighborhood where the military officer lived, held a demonstration that began on Rua Dias da Cruz and went to the intersection of Rua Hermengarda and Lins de Vasconcelos, where the crime occurred. More than 100 people participated in a protest against the deaths of 113 military police officers this year. During the demonstration, several residents and representatives of local organizations protested against the wave of violence in Rio de Janeiro. At the end, they released white gas balloons, calling for peace.