Justice convicts first person involved in the killing of Marielle Franco and Anderson Gomes

Brasil de Fato

The first conviction was handed down by the Rio de Janeiro state courts regarding the murder of Councilwoman Marielle Franco and her driver Anderson Gomes in March 2018. Edilson Barbosa dos Santos, dubbed “Orelha”, was sentenced to five years in prison for helping the killers get rid of the car used in the crime, a Chevrolet Cobalt.

According to the investigation, the murders – former police officers Ronnie Lessa and Élcio Queiroz – got to the city of Santos through former firefighter Maxwell Simões Correa, known as Suel, who knew Orelha, the owner of a junkyard in Morro da Pedreira, in Rio’s northern region.

Orelha’s participation was confirmed after Queiroz made a statement to the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Police. The car was taken to the owner of the junkyard on March 16, two days after the executions of Marielle and Anderson.

Today, Ronnie Lessa and Élcio de Queiroz are defendants in the case and are in federal prisons outside Rio. Maxwell Simões Correa has been in prison since July 2023 also for monitoring the councilwoman’s routine to inform the murders. All three will face a jury. In March of this year, the brothers Domingos Brazão and Chiquinho Brazão were also arrested on charges of masterminding the attack.