Brazilian police, in coordination with the justice ministry, have said that they managed to stop a bomb attack on the Lady Gaga concert in Brazil that took place on Saturday, May 3 before it happens.
Police spoke about the attack
The Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro state and the justice ministry said that suspects had recruited participants to carry out bomb attacks using improvised explosives at the Lady Gaga Rio concert on Saturday. The plan aimed at gaining notoriety on social media.
The suspects were arrested before the concert
A man allegedly responsible for the plan as well as a teenager were arrested prior to the concert, police said.
The Guardian reported that police believe the attack on the Lady Gaga concert was an attempt to target Brazil’s LGBTQ+ community.
Lady Gaga was giving a free concert
The Lady Gaga concert at Copacabana Beach on May 3 was free entry, with the crowd estimated to have been around 2.5 million people.
According to People, this is the highest attended concert by a female artist in history.
The alleged leader was arrested
The alleged mastermind behind the attack was arrested on illegal possession of firearms, and a teenager was also arrested on charges of child sexual abuse.
The two were arrested in the hours before the show, allowing the event to go ahead without disruption.
Lady Gaga and her team only found out later
The day after the concert, a spokesperson for Lady Gaga told The Hollywood Reporter that she had no idea about the attack prior to or during the concert, and only found out later.
They said, “We learned about this alleged threat via media reports this morning.”
Authorities allegedly hadn’t communicated any risks
“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,” the spokesperson for the pop star added.
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“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.”
The pair arrested were ‘recruiting’ people
According to the police, the two people arrested had been working together to “recruit” people at the concert to carry out the “coordinated attacks” using “homemade explosives.”
As per The Guardian, Rio police chief, Luiz Lima, said the group used violent content online “aimed at gaining notoriety to attract more participants – most of them teenagers, many of them children.”
Police believe it was an attempt at targeting LGBTQ+ public
As per CNN News 18, police said, “Since Monday, our police and intelligence received information that there would be a plan in these digital platforms to commit a bomb attack with homemade explosive artifacts in Molotov cocktails which will be used during the show of singer Lady Gaga on May 3, mainly targeting the LGBTQIA+ public.”
Gaga made an Instagram post afterwards
After her concert in Rio on Saturday, Lady Gaga wrote on Instagram, “Nothing could prepare me for the feeling I had during last night’s show — the absolute pride and joy I felt singing for the people of Brazil. The sight of the crowd during my opening songs took my breath away.”
“Your culture is so vibrant and special, I hope you know how grateful I am to have shared this historical moment with you.”
She felt grateful for the turnout
Gaga continued, “An estimated 2.5 million people came to see me sing, the biggest crowd for any woman in history. I wish I could share this feeling with the whole world … Thank you Rio for waiting for me to come back.”
“Thank you little monsters all over the world. I love you. I will never forget this moment. Paws up little monsters. Obrigada. Love, Mother Monster,” she concluded.
