Two people arrested in bomb threat posed by homophobic group at Lady Gaga concert
Police in Brazil have confirmed that two people have been arrested in connection with an alleged bomb threat plot at the free Lady Gaga concert in Rio de Janeiro.
The event broke the record for the biggest standalone crowd at a free concert, garnering over 2million fans to watch the two-hour-plus set.
Rio de Janeiro’s state police have announced that they had worked with the Justice Ministry to disrupt an attack reportedly planned by a group that was spreading hate speech against the LGBTQ+ community. Allegedly, the group sought to radicalise and recruit teenagers to carry out attacks using Molotov cocktails and other improvised explosives.
The group had one key aim: to go viral. “The plan was treated as a ‘collective challenge’ with the aim of gaining notoriety on social media,” the police said.
The authorities moved quickly, apparently raiding the locations of 15 suspects across several states in Brazil. Along the way, they confiscated phones and other electronic devices.
Subsequently, two suspects have been arrested. One person was arrested for illegal possession of a firearm in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, while a teenager was detained for storing child pornography in Rio.
The Justice Ministry said members of the group falsely presented themselves online as “Little Monsters” in order to reach teenagers and lure them into “networks with violent and self-destructive content.” “Little Monsters” is Lady Gaga’s nickname for her fans.
Maximum security was recorded at the event, including 3,300 military and 1,500 police officers, as well as 400 military firefighters. Drones and facial recognition cameras were also used to police the event.
Lady Gaga and her team have yet to comment on the news.
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