Police in Brazil arrest two people over plot to bomb Lady Gaga concert in Rio
Rio de Janeiro's state police said they had worked with the Justice Ministry to disrupt an attack allegedly planned by a group that was spreading hate speech against the LGBTQ community.
Police said the group sought to radicalise and recruit teenagers to carry out attacks using Molotov cocktails and improvised explosives.
Lady Gaga performed a free concert in Rio (Silvia Izquierdo/AP)
'The plan was treated as a 'collective challenge' with the aim of gaining notoriety on social media,' police said.
Authorities said they arrested two people in connection with the planned attack — the alleged leader of the group on illegal weapons possession charges in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, and a teenager on child pornography charges in Rio.
Authorities said police raided the locations of 15 suspects across several states in Brazil and confiscated phones and other electronic devices.
The Justice Ministry said members of the group falsely presented themselves online as 'Little Monsters' — Lady Gaga's nickname for her fans — in order to reach teenagers and lure them into 'networks with violent and self-destructive content'.
Lady Gaga performs during her free concert on Copacabana Beach (Silvia Izquierdo/AP)
Police said they carried out the operation quietly on Saturday 'avoiding panic or distortion of information among the population'.
The ministry said there was no impact on those attending the free concert.
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