Rio de Janeiro.- The Brazilian police reported Sunday that frustrated a pump attack planned for the Historical concert by Lady Gaga that attracted more than 2 million people on Saturday to the beaches of Copacabana, in Rio de Janeiro, In the most calling show of the successful American pop artist.
“The Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro, together with the Ministry of Justice, He prevented a bomb attack that would occur in Lady Gaga’s show in Copacabana”, The authorities reported in X.
So far there is two people arrested for the case: The alleged leader of the group- arrested, armed, in Rio Grande do Sul, south of Brazil- and a teenager who stored child pornography, captured in Rio de Janeiro.
Although the authorities said the arrests happened in the hours before the Lady Gaga show, The event was held without interruptions, which led some to question the seriousness of the threat. Serious security concerns typically lead the organizers to cancel such massive events, as happened with the concerts of Taylor Swift In Vienna last year.
The Civil Police of the State of Rio de Janeiro, who works in coordination with the Ministry of Justice of Brazil, said that The plan was orchestrated by a group that promotes the discourse of hate and radicalization of adolescents, including autolesions and violent contents as a form of social belonging.
According to the police, The objectives of the attack were children, adolescents and LGBT public.
The operation, called “Operation Fake Monster” –Because recruiters identified themselves as members of the Gaga fans base, known as the “Little Monsters”– He identified that the suspects were looking for young people on social networks to carry out the attacks.
“The suspects recruited participants, including minors, to carry out coordinated attacks using improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails”Police said in a statement.
“The plan was like a ‘collective challenge’ with the aim of gaining notoriety in social networks”, Said the police. The group, he added, spread violent content to adolescents online as” a form of belonging. “
According to the Municipality of Río, 2.1 million people attended the free American pop star concert.
The operation was based on a report from the Ministry of Justice following a data of the Intelligence of the State Police, which discovered digital cells that fostered violent behavior among adolescents using coded language and Extremist symbology.
during the execution of 15 search and seizure orders, computers, electronic devices and other materials were kidnapped. Everything will be analyzed and evaluated. As a result of the operation, the agents also went to Macaé, in the north of Río de Janeiro. There they arrested a suspect to plan attacks who also threatened to kill a child and, according to the police, is accused of terrorism and induction to crime.
Police declared that he carried out the operation discreetly on Saturday “Avoiding panic or information distortion among the population.” The Ministry assured that attendees to the free concert were not affected.
Sunday, A spokesman for Lady Gaga reported that the star and her team “found out about this alleged threat through media reports this morning”. “Before and during the show, there were no known security concerns, or No police communication or authorities To Lady Gaga about possible risks, ”according to the spokesman.
“His team worked closely with the forces of the order during the planning and execution of the concert and all the parties trusted the security measures implemented,” the statement mentioned.
Security was strict at Saturday’s concert, with 5200 military and police deployed on the beach where fans enjoyed the classic successes of the pop singer as “Born This Way”, which became a kind of LGBTQ anthem after its launch in 2011.
Lady Gaga expressed her gratitude for the enormous crowd in an Instagram post in which He did not mention the alleged plot.
“Nothing could prepare for the feeling I had during the show last night: the Absolute pride and joy I felt when singing for the people of Brazil”, He wrote.“ The view of the crowd during my opening songs left me breathless. His heart shines so intensely, his culture is so vibrant and special, I hope they know How grateful I am to have shared this historical moment with you”.
AP, Reuters and Diario agencies The globe
