During an anti-World Cup demonstration in Sao Paulo on Saturday, a 22-year-old man named Fabricio Proteus Chaves was shot and injured by police. Reports from Brazilian media on Monday indicated that he had emerged from a coma but remains in serious condition.
According to Folha de Sao Paulo, Chaves was struck by two bullets, one in the chest causing internal bleeding, and another in the groin. He is currently being treated at Santa Casa hospital and is no longer on respiratory assistance, though his condition is still considered serious. The military police stated that Chaves fled when they attempted to arrest him and was later found with explosive material in his backpack. The Sao Paulo Public Security Secretariat reported that Chaves brandished a box cutter at one of the police officers, causing them to open fire.
Surveillance footage aired by Globo captured the police officers chasing Chaves, followed by an altercation where shots were fired. The protest, attended by approximately 2,500 people, was against the expenses associated with hosting the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. It began peacefully but later turned violent, with incidents of vandalism including the burning of a family’s car, destruction of a police vehicle, and damage to several businesses. Local press reported that 128 individuals were arrested and subsequently released on Sunday. The demonstration was organized under the slogan “the World Cup will not take place,” as part of a series of anti-World Cup protests convened in 36 cities across Brazil by the Anonymous protest movement. This demonstration was seen as a preliminary gauge of public sentiment in the country following the significant social unrest in June 2013 during the Confederations Cup.
