People attack two cell phone theft suspects at Madonna concert in Copacabana

This Saturday (04), a video circulated on social media in which two men accused of robbery were acting on Copacabana beach, in the South Zone of Rio de Janeiro. As soon as they were identified, the men were attacked by the population and thrown into a garbage dumpster that was at the location. The incident would have occurred before the start of Madonna's performance, thousands of people gathered nearby, which may have facilitated the possible theft.

Police action in Rio

Police officers from the Special Rondas and Crowd Control (Recom) battalion were deployed to the location to contain the attackers and detain the suspects. The two men were detained by military police while they were applauded by the crowd.

Even with the strong security scheme set up for the show, which involved a force of 3,200 military police officers and 1,130 municipal guards, there were some records of incidents at the Copacabana and Ipanema police stations. According to a partial report released by the Military Police on Saturday night (4), around 33 people were taken to the police station and more than 160 objects were seized as they presented a risk to the security of the event. The seizures were made at search points spread throughout the Orla, the information is from Rio Diary.

Governor Cláudio Castro informed that he will publish the report with information about the steps taken at the event, next Monday (6), at the Integrated Command and Control Center (CICC).

_{Fan filming event had cell phone stolen (video: reproduction/@terrabrasil)}

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Victim filmed the robbery himself

Another unusual occurrence happened to a fan who was recording a video after the end of Madonna's performance. While showing images of the scene, a suspect allegedly took the cell phone from the victim's hand, who managed to reach the suspect and retrieve the device.

Occurrences like this often happen at events on Copacabana beach, mainly due to the crowd of people and the exposure of cell phones to record images.

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_{Increase in cell phone theft worries Police and users (Photo: reproduction/ VejaRio)}

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Possible fate of stolen cell phones

There was a 34% increase in cell phone theft in Rio de Janeiro, the data was published by the Public Security Institute (ISP). In most cases, the devices are sold here, offered online at a price below the market or sent abroad to countries where there is no blocking of devices.

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The Civil Police reported that they continue to investigate robberies, thefts, sale and reception of cell phones to identify the criminals and recover the devices. In February this year, around 37 people were arrested for effectively participating in the action, around 260 devices were recovered and handed over to the victims.

Featured photo: Suspects attacked by group on Copacabana beach (Reproduction/G1)