Federal Police Officer Felipe Seixas, the security coordinator of the opening ceremony for Rio-2016, was the victim of an attempted robbery as he was leaving Maracanã stadium in the early morning on Saturday, the 6th.

Seixas was heading to his car which was parked at UERJ (Rio de Janeiro State University) next to one of the stadium's gates when he was confronted on São Francisco Street by four men armed with knives.

The officer was in the company of a federal agent and a military policeman assigned to SESGE (Special Secretariat for Major Events). The security team reacted and fired at one of the robbers, identified as Ronaldo Fagner Marques de Souze, 20, who was on a bicycle and died at the scene. The other robbers managed to escape.

According to testimony given at the police station, one of the robbers said that he had a gun and this led the military policeman to fire his weapon.

When questioned about the incident, SESGE had no comment.

The opening of the Rio Olympics was organized with unprecedented security for Brazil.

The security procedures and setup encompassed eight neighborhoods in the northern zone of Rio de Janeiro's capital, including the region surrounding the Maracanã stadium.

Translated by LLOYD HARDER

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