Police arrest two people over thwarted bomb plot at pop star Lady Gaga's packed concert in Rio de Janeiro

Sky News AU

05-05-2025

Police in Brazil have arrested two people in connection with a thwarted plot to detonate a bomb at pop star Lady Gaga's packed concert in Rio de Janeiro.
A record-breaking 2.1 million fans attended the 39-year-old American singer's free concert at Copacabana Beach on Saturday about 10 pm.
Police said authorities worked with the Justice Ministry to thwart the attack allegedly planned by a group which spread hate speech against children, teens and the LGBTQ+ community in Brazil.
Police said the group sought to radicalise and recruit teens to carry out attacks using Molotov cocktails and improvised explosives to gain notoriety online.
The Justice Ministry said it determined the group falsely presented itself as Gaga's fan group Little Monsters and posed a 'risk to public order.'
The ministry said the group's false pretence aimed to lure teenagers into 'networks with violent and self-destructive content.'
Police arrested and charged the alleged group leader with illegal weapons possession in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul as part of an effort called Operation Fake Monster.
A teenager was also arrested and charged with child pornography in Rio de Janeiro.
As both arrests occurred hours before the Shallow singer's concert started, police said the event went ahead without disruption.
'The operation was launched to neutralise the digital behaviour that was being coordinated, with potential risk to the public at the event, without any impact on attendees,' authorities said in a statement.
"The work was carried out discreetly and precisely, avoiding panic or distortion of information among the population.'
However, this led to questions about the seriousness of the threat posed.
Serious security concerns at major events typically lead event organisers to cancel them, like pop star Taylor Swift's Vienna leg of her Era's tour over a thwarted terrorist attack plot last year.
Authorities said police confiscated phones and other electronics in raids on the homes of 15 suspects across several Brazilian states.
Although police believed homemade bombs were intended to be used in the thwarted attack, there was no mention of weapons or explosives found in the raids.
A spokesperson for Gaga said the A Star Is Born actress only learned of the planned attack at her beach concert, affectionately dubbed 'Gagacabana,' after the media reported it.
'We learned about this alleged threat via media reports this morning,' the spokesperson said.
'Prior to and during the show, there were no known safety concerns, nor any communication from the police or authorities to Lady Gaga regarding any potential risks.
'Her team worked closely with law enforcement throughout the planning and execution of the concert and all parties were confident in the safety measures in place.'
A major security operation featuring 5,000 police officers, metal detectors, drones and facial recognition cameras swarmed the beach, where people travelled nationwide and queued from early in the morning.
On Sunday, Gaga posted a lengthy and heartfelt thank you to the crowd.
"An estimated 2.5 million people came to see me sing, the biggest crowd for any woman in history," she said.
"I wish I could share this feeling with the whole world—I know I can't, but I can say this—if you lose your way, you can find your way back if you believe in yourself and work hard."
The city paid for Gaga's concert to revitalise Rio de Janeiro's economy and is estimated to have generated nearly $100 million.