Long sentences for the murder of a popular Brazilian politician

In Brazil, two former police officers were found guilty of murdering politician Marielle Franco. She was shot in 2018 while driving through Rio de Janeiro with her driver. Both did not survive the attack. Franco was a famous face in the progressive politics of the Brazilian metropolis. Her death caused a wave of concern.

The two men who were convicted are the shooter and the driver of the car from which the shooting took place. Ronnie Lessa and Élcio de Queiroz were sentenced to 79 and 60 years respectively. They were arrested a year after the murder and have been in custody ever since.

For a long time it was not clear what the motive was for the assassination attempt. But one of them came early this year disappointment in the investigation when three men were arrested who are said to have given the order.

Two of the three were politicians. The third is the former police chief of Rio. They are said to support right-wing vice-president Bolsonaro. They also had links to militias, partly formed by agents and ex-agents.

It was just these militias that got a real hit with an investigation in which Marielle Franco had participated. She published the names of more than 200 people who were secretly members of the criminal gangs. One of them is the former police chief who is now behind bars for Franco’s murder.

Marielle Franco was very popular, especially among the poor people from the slums of the city, the so-called favelas. Franco himself had grown up there. As a politician, she was committed to their interests and regularly criticized the sometimes harsh police action in the slums.

The death of 38-year-old Franco deeply affected many people, thousands of people took to the streets to protest.

Despite public pressure to solve the case quickly, it took more than six years before the first man was sentenced. It is believed that the former police chief, who is now a suspect, managed to stall the investigation for a long time.

The driver who was convicted today confessed to the murder in 2023. The shooter is said to have made a deal with the justice system in January of this year. As a result of his confession, the three people who may have committed the murder were arrested.