In the early hours of October 17th, 2013 Paulo Roberto Pinho de Menezes, 18, was beaten to death by officers of the ‘Police Pacification Unit’ (UPP) in the Manguinhos favela of Rio de Janeiro. The cops immobilized the teenager and took him in a dark back-alley, where they fiercely beat him to death. The exact circumstances of his assassination are not yet clarified. However, his mother and other residents have verified that Paulo Roberto was among a group of youths when cops of the local UPP conducted a control in the favela.
In the late afternoon of October 17th revolted youths attacked cops with stones, enraged by the assassination of Paulo Roberto. The brute violence of repression forces escalated even further, when cops used live ammunition causing injuries to various individuals. A 17-years-old girl was hit on her leg by police bullet and evacuated to the hospital. The pigs did not hesitate to threaten even the sister of Paulo Roberto, pointing a gun at her.
The funeral for the boy was scheduled for Friday the 18th of October, day when a morning protest was also called to denounce the umpteenth murder at the hands of police.
You may read some facts about the exact role of the ‘Police Pacification Unit’ in the cleansing of the favelas, in the name of Brazil’s preparations for the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics, here. A video with English subtitles concerning another killing in the Manguinhos favela, in March 2013, can be viewed here.