Brazilian police kill at least 3 men in exchange of fire with suspected burglars

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazilian military police killed at least three men in the Sao Paulo area in what officials said Wednesday was an exchange of fire when officers engaged with suspected burglars. The deaths prompted protesters to set a bus on fire.

Sao Paulo's security agency said in a statement that military police had become suspicious Tuesday afternoon when a vehicle fled after noticing their presence in the suburb of Guarulhos. There was an exchange of fire and four occupants of the car were hit, the statement said.

An ambulance came and found three of them dead. The fourth person, aged 22, was hospitalized. Local media G1 outlet reported that he also died, but the secretariat for public security did not confirm his death.

The military police seized three firearms along with ammunition from the vehicle.

The men are suspected of carrying out house burglaries, according to G1, which reported that the vehicle was involved in a burglary last week.

Sao Paulo officials said civilian police are investigating the incident.

Protesters later set a bus on fire on Tuesday evening in the Sao Paulo metro area.

Watchdogs have decried an uptick in police violence since Sao Paulo state Gov. Tarcísio de Freitas took office early 2023.

De Freitas is an ally of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, who has repeatedly voiced support for giving police carte blanche to kill criminals.

In 2024, Sao Paulo’s military police killed 769 people, a 67% increase compared to 460 killings the previous year, according to data from Sao Paulo’s Public Prosecutor’s Office.