Another suspect in killing of Rio councilor Marielle Franco arrested
Rio de Janeiro court authorities have ordered the preventive detention of former Fire Department Sergeant Maxwell Correa on suspicion of involvement in the killings of former Rio de Janeiro city councilor Marielle Franco and her driver Anderson Gomes.
Correa should also be transferred to a maximum-security federal prison outside the state as he poses a “risk to investigations.” Evidence presented by Rio prosecutors points to his connection to the case before, during, and after the murders.
City councilor Marielle Franco, killed on March 14, 2018, in downtown Rio’s Estácio district, had been monitored since August 2017, seven months before the crime.
Evidence
The evidence indicating Correa’s participation stems from the plea bargain statement made by another defendant—former military police officer Élcio de Queiroz. The testimony mentions the firefighter’s connection with Ronnie Lessa, who is also in prison, accused of shooting at the car where the victims were. Correa is also believed to have been involved in swapping license plates of the vehicle used in the murder, disposing of the capsules and ammo used in the crime, and arranging for the car to be dismantled one day after the crime.
Correa, Élcio alleged, was responsible for financially providing for his family and paying for his defense expenses, in order to prevent a breakup between them. Correa was supposedly a member of a criminal organization, in addition to having assets incompatible with his financial condition.
Federal Police
Federal operation Élpis—which was launched Monday (Jul. 24) and culminated in the arrest of Maxwell Correa—is the first crackdown initiated after Minister of Justice and Public Security Flávio Dino requested the Federal Police and Rio prosecutors in February to investigate the two killings as well as the attempted murder of Franco’s adviser Fernanda Chaves, who was also in the car with the councilwoman.
