Arrest of those responsible for the murder of Marielle Franco exposes the size of the militia’s tentacles in RJ

For six years, a question hung like a shadow over the country: who ordered the murder of Marielle? The executors were already known, two former military police officers with services provided to the so-called Crime Office, and almost all of the accomplices in the plot. But it was only on March 24th that Brazil met those who ordered the murder of the then Rio de Janeiro councilor by Psol, shot three times in the head and once in the neck in March 2018, in the center of the capital of Rio de Janeiro, at the side of his driver, Anderson Gomes, also dead.

In a plea bargain, the full content of which was revealed only this week, former PM Ronnie Lessa, who carried out the shooting, named two characters known both for their political trajectory and for their links with the Rio militia. According to Lessa, the men in charge were the Domingos brothers and Chiquinho Brazão, both arrested by the Federal Police last Sunday. The first, a former councilor and former state deputy, is now an advisor to the State Audit Court (TCE-RJ). The second, federal deputy for União Brasil, from where he was expelled the day after his arrest.

The Brazão family’s fingerprints in death had already been exposed by The Intercept Brasil in January, in a report by journalists Flávio VM Costa, André Uzeda and Carol Castro, based on excerpts from Lessa’s testimony, who was arrested in 2019 alongside his accomplice, the former PM Elcio Queiroz, who was responsible for driving the Cobalt used in the murder. The details provided by the shooter also led to the arrest of police chief Rivaldo Barbosa, considered by the PF to be a key player in the crime.

According to the court decision that culminated in the siege of Brazão, Barbosa contributed to the “preparation of the crime, actively collaborating in the construction of the execution plan and ensuring that there would be no repressive action on the part of the Civil Police”. Then director of Rio’s Homicide Division, he was present at the meeting at which Marielle was sentenced to death by Domingos and Chiquinho. It was up to him to plan the details and avoid traces that would lead to the discovery of the masterminds. On the other hand, in addition to money, Barbosa’s career in the Civil Service was boosted by the strong political influence of his brothers.

Since the beginning of 2017, according to the PF, Marielle had become a thorn in the Brazão’s throat, due to her fight to prevent the population from buying lots in areas controlled by the militia. Accused by the police of engaging in a wide range of criminal activities, the brothers were involved in land grabbing in neighborhoods under militia control.

In his statement, Ronnie Lessa said that he was summoned to a meeting with Barbosa and the Brazão in the second half of that year. The reason was to sanctify the execution of the councilor. The idea was to infiltrate a trusted person within the Psol militancy to monitor the councilor’s steps and provide details about her routine, including routes and calendar of events. The former PM also narrated a second meeting with the police chief in which Lessa was instructed not to commit the crime around the City Council. Barbosa wanted to prevent the death from gaining “political connotation, putting pressure on the police forces to respond efficiently.”

Participation in the crime paved the way for Barbosa to be appointed general delegate of the Civil Police, the top of his career, and an act signed by the intervenor appointed by then president Michel Temer (MDB) to take care of the crisis in Public Security in the state of Rio, the general Braga Netto, later elevated to the top of the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government. In a demonstration of the most absolute cynicism and confidence in impunity, Barbosa took office in a ceremony held on the eve of the execution. He didn’t expect that one day the house would fall on him and the others involved in the brutal death of a councilwoman committed to fighting the militias.