Security cameras recorded from start to finish the pursuit that ended in the lynching and death of Cláudio Rafael Landeiro, 37, in Copacabana, in Rio de Janeiro's South Zone, on the night of August 11. The footage, aired by TV Globo's Fantástico program on Sunday (23) and obtained by Folha de S.Paulo, points to at least seven people involved or present at different moments of the sequence. Cláudio was killed under suspicion of having stolen a bicycle that, according to the Civil Police investigation, belonged to his sister.
The timeline pieced together from the images shows that Cláudio left the housing complex where he lived in Botafogo, also in the South Zone, at 10:26 p.m., and arrived at 10:54 p.m. at a convenience store on the corner of Barata Ribeiro and Belford Roxo streets. According to an employee's account to investigators, he went in to ask for a cigarette but gave up when told he would have to pay, and stayed outside leaning against the wall. At 11:21 p.m., security guard Davi Santos Machado arrived and asked whether the bicycle was his. At 11:23 p.m., the store employee padlocked the bike next to water jugs while Davi photographed it. At 11:33 p.m., the two men even shook hands, but according to the investigation Davi then called another security guard on his phone. At 11:37 p.m., Jorge Luiz Ricardo Dias crossed Barata Ribeiro carrying the bicycle, accompanied by Davi and Cláudio, and rode off on it.
The assault took place on Felipe de Oliveira street. According to CNN Brasil, two men with app delivery backpacks arrived on bicycles and a third appeared holding a piece of wood. The attack lasted nearly nine minutes: Folha's analysis of the footage counted 63 blows with pieces of wood, while the police count cited by CNN points to at least 30 club strikes, plus punches and kicks. Cláudio did not fight back. After he fell unconscious, the attackers went through his pockets and one of them photographed the scene. The group took the bicycle and left Cláudio on the sidewalk without calling for help.
Firefighters were called and took the cyclist to the Miguel Couto Municipal Hospital, in Gávea, but he did not survive. According to information given to the family, the death was caused by traumatic brain injury and internal bleeding.
The investigation so far
The case is being investigated by the Rio de Janeiro Civil Police. Days after the crime, Davi Santos Machado was caught on security cameras riding the victim's bicycle to the 12th police precinct, in Copacabana, where he gave a statement and denied taking part in the beating. On Thursday (20), he turned up again, this time at the 53rd precinct, in Mesquita, and admitted involvement in the case, according to CNN Brasil. Besides Davi and Jorge Luiz, police identified as participants security guard Felipe Eduardo dos Santos and men who worked as app delivery riders in the area.
Four suspects have been arrested, and police are still trying to locate a fifth person involved, according to G1. The case has renewed the debate over lynchings in Brazil, which recur in large cities and often start from false accusations. In an analysis published on Friday (28), Brasil de Fato linked the episode to the spread of hate speech and "take the law into your own hands" rhetoric. For the police, the footage covering nearly the entire crime, from the approach at the convenience store to the nine minutes of beating, is now the main piece of evidence to hold each of those involved accountable.