Crossing of versions and controversy in the Brazilian city of São Paulo after a police operation that left eight people dead in the metropolitan area of Baixada Santista. The action, carried out to find the suspects in the murder of a soldier from the elite force of the militarized police, has generated concern among the population.
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A police operation in Baixada Santista, São Paulo, generates controversy due to the number of reported deaths. It all began after the murder of police officer Patrick Bastos Reis, 30, a member of the militarized police force ROTA (Rondas Ostensivas Tobias de Aguiar) on Thursday, July 27.
The governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas, praised the operation, affirming that those responsible for the death of the uniformed officer will be investigated, arrested and brought to justice. However, the Ombudsman’s Office reported that at least ten people died in the search for the suspects in the murder of the ROTA officer.
There are discrepancies between the figures provided by the São Paulo government and the Brazilian Ombudsman’s Office, which causes concern among the population. Over the weekend, there were eight reports of incidents with eight deaths, according to the government, but the Ouvidoria indicated that at least ten people had lost their lives.
The suspect, identified as Erickson David da Silva, identified as responsible for the shots that killed officer Reis, was arrested on Sunday in São Paulo. Before his capture, he made a video calling for the “killing” of innocents in Guarujá to stop.
Attention. The author of the shot that killed soldier Reis, not Guarujá, has just been captured in the South Zone of São Paulo. Three involved are already in jail, after intelligence work headed by the @PMESP. A justiça will be feita. Any attack on our police officers will go unpunished.
— Tarcísio Gomes de Freitas (@tarcisiogdf) July 30, 2023
The São Paulo Public Ministry announced that it will initiate a procedure to analyze the police operation, and the São Paulo Public Defender’s Office got involved to monitor the situation from the Specialized Center for Citizenship and Human Rights.
On the other hand, the Tarcísio government was questioned for freezing the number of body cameras used by the Military Police in the state. Between February and June, there were no changes in the 10,125 teams available for patrolling the streets, while the extension of the program is studied.
Body cameras, at the center of the debate
In addition, on Friday it was reported that a street vendor was killed by nine shots. His family found him with cigarette burns and a cut on his arm. Defender Claudio Aparecido da Silva claimed that Guarujá residents accused police of torturing and killing the man.
🗣️ Operação após morte de soldado da Rota no Guarujá deixou 8 mortos, says Tarcísio
The information diverges from two close dice for Ouvidoria, which counts 10 assassinated people pic.twitter.com/b1w2CDIKpP
— UOL News (@UOLNoticias) July 31, 2023
The defender also assured that the agents acted with body cameras and that therefore he requested the images in order to verify that there were no irregularities in the actions of the police in the territory.
The operation and use of body cameras is a topic of great relevance in the context of public safety in São Paulo. The search for a balance between the fight against crime and respect for human rights became essential to guarantee confidence in the institutions and the protection of the population.
The Olho Vivo program, in Spanish “expert eye”, implemented in August 2020, experienced a gradual increase in the number of kits delivered until last year with 10,000 units available to the troop, which has around 100,000 members. The decision to maintain the current number of cameras generated debate and criticism from experts and the public.
Although the suspect in the murder of Reis and nine other people were arrested, the residents of the municipality of Baixada Santista told the Public Defender’s Office that the uniformed men were involved in acts of torture and homicide against several people, and according to local media such as ‘Globo’, there was a threat to assassinate another 60 residents in different favelas of the city.
With EFE and local media
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