Police arrest man accused of leading attack on MST settlement in SP
The attack, which occurred on Friday night (January 10), in Tremembé, left two people dead and six injured (NOTE: This article published before third MST militant died.)
The man accused of leading the attack on a settlement of the Landless Workers' Movement (MST), in Tremembé, in the interior of São Paulo, was arrested this Saturday (11).
The Taubaté sectional delegate, Marcos Ricardo Parra, stated that the 41-year-old man confessed to the crime. “Not only did he confess, but he is also indicating where the other people [who participated in the attack] can be found,” he said at a press conference.
In addition to confessing to participating in the murders, the man was identified by victims who are hospitalized and by witnesses who witnessed the attack. “We are working on the condition that we are certain that he was involved,” said police chief Marcos Ricardo Parra.
However, it is not yet known what motivated the crime. Evidence suggests that it may have been related to a dispute over a plot of land in the settlement.
“The motivation was an internal problem among people in the settlement itself, among themselves, that is, without any connotation of invasion or protection of land. It was a demand for a position regarding whether or not to negotiate the land. We have not yet been able to understand whether he was the buyer or the intermediary. Either way, he was there to change the minds of others,” said Parra.
The attack, which occurred on Friday night (10) in the Olga Benário settlement, left two people dead and six injured. Residents of the settlement say that, around 11 pm, the criminals invaded the settlement in cars and motorcycles, shooting indiscriminately at people.
Gleison Barbosa de Carvalho, 28, and Valdir do Nascimento, 52, died instantly. Denis Carvalho, 29, was taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the head and placed in an induced coma. (NOTE: Denis Carvalho died from his injuries.) The other victims were taken to the Taubaté Regional Hospital and underwent surgery to remove the bullets. According to the MST leadership, they are out of danger.
Paulo Teixeira, Minister of Agrarian Development and Family Farming, spoke about the attack on the MST settlement. He said he reported the crime to the Secretary of Public Security of São Paulo, Guilherme Derrite, asking for action and punishment for the criminals. Teixeira also said he contacted the Director General of the Federal Police, Andrei Rodrigues.
“A very serious crime took place this morning. A group of criminals invaded the Olga Benário settlement, in the municipality of Tremembé, state of São Paulo, and shot 8 settlers, leading to the death of settlers Valdir do Nascimento and young Gleison Barbosa Carvalho. The others are injured in the hospital. I reported the crime to the Secretary of Public Security of São Paulo and asked for measures to be taken to investigate the perpetrators and arrest them,” the minister announced on his social media.