Vítor Abdala
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Rio - Yesterday (15) morning the Army arrested its first suspect in the case of the rifles stolen from the Central Transport Unit (ECT) in the northern zone of the city of Rio de Janeiro. He is an ex-corporal, Joelson Basília da Silva, who used to work in the garrison and has been on leave since February. According to information from the Military Public Defense Ministry, he was arrested when he showed up to testify.

Silva was presumably identified by the victims, that is, the soliders who were on duty in the wee morning hours of March 3, when armed criminals invaded the unit and stole the weapons. The Army used a temporary arrest warrant issued by the courts.

The weapons were recovered on Tuesday (14).

Translation: David Silberstein