RIO DE JANEIRO — Brazil’s federal police arrested on Sunday the men suspected of ordering the killing of Rio de Janeiro councilwoman Marielle Franco in 2018, a long-awaited step after years of society clamoring for justice.
Two federal police sources with knowledge of the investigation told The Associated Press that congressman Chiquinho Brazão and his brother Domingos Brazão, a member of Rio state’s accounts watchdog, were detained on suspicion of ordering the hit against Franco. Both have connections to criminal groups, known as militias, who illegally charge residents for various services, including protection.
Franco, the councilwoman, worked as an assistant to then-state lawmaker Marcelo Freixo in 2008, as he presided over a special committee investigating militias in Rio’s state assembly. Freixo’s final report indicted 226 suspected militia members and politicians and government employees, including Domingos Brazão.
Known universally by her first name, Marielle grew up in a favela herself, the Mare neighborhood near Rio’s international airport. She became a human rights activist there after her friend was killed by a stray bullet in a shootout between police and drug traffickers. She worked for a state lawmaker investigating organized crime, then went on to win a seat in Rio’s city council in 2016. She kept receiving and sharing complaints of police abuse until days before she was killed.
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