At least 19 people have died and another seven were injured in a series of shootings across the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil, Xinhua reported.
Advertisement
Gunmen with face masks arrived by auto, got out of the vehicle and quickly shot their victims.
Officers are investigating if shootings on the western outskirts of Sao Paulo are related.
Osasco Mayor Jorge Lapa informed the G1 information web site he believed the assaults could possibly be associated to the deaths final week of two cops.
Commentators said the killings would serve as a “reality check” for the city, where crime remains a major concern. Those who said they had were shot.
He said 15 of the victims were shot dead in Osasco, three in Barueri and one in Itapevi.
Globo News television broadcast security camera footage of one attack, showing a group of masked assailants entering a bar, ordering clients to raise their hands in the air, then shooting them.
This is while investigators are considering the hypothesis that the killings may have been carried out by corrupt police officers, de Moraes added, explaining that they could have been seeking revenge for the murders of a policeman and a civil guard officer in Osasco and Barueri last week.
A spokesman for the security forces earlier described the wave of killings late on Thursday as “unusual”.
Another two people were killed an hour later in a city park.
Advertisement
Mr Lapas said the authorities planned to take measures so that the situation did not worsen over the coming days.
