Rio governor wants to deploy heli snipers to take down armed suspects
The newly elected far-right leader said snipers could shoot criminals in the back unprovoked to bring down the city's murder rate.
Wednesday 31 October 2018 23:11, UK
Rio de Janeiro's next governor has said he will deploy snipers to take down armed criminal suspects - even if police are not in danger.
Wilson Witzel was elected alongside Brazil's far-right president elect Jair Bolsonaro on Sunday after both campaigned on hardline platforms.
Following through on a campaign pledge, the far-right governor-elect said he would tell police and soldiers to open fire on armed suspects, even if it meant shooting them in the back unprovoked.
He also wants to deploy snipers in helicopters to shoot suspects from the air during police operations against drug traffickers.
"If you have five criminal elements shooting at a policeman, all of them can and should be taken down," he said in an interview on Monday night with TV network Globonews.
Asked if his plan included shooting suspects in the back, he said: "Gun in hand? He's a threat. He's going to use that gun to attack anyone who's in front of him."
Rio's impoverished favelas are rife with crime, with heavily armed drug traffickers often seen battling security forces.
In February, president Michel Temer deployed the army to Rio in an attempt to gain the upper hand.
Mr Witzel said he wants to extend the 10-month emergency deployment by another 10 months.
Mr Bolsonaro largely won by saying he would stand up to violent crime, with last year reaching a record 63,880 murders.
He swept up 12 far-right governors with him.
Rights activists said Mr Witzel's proposals are illegal.
"Giving prior authorisation to automatically kill anyone who may be armed when there is no imminent risk to life is an affront to Brazilian and international law," Amnesty International said.
"It would only result in an escalation of violence and put hundreds of thousands of people's lives at risk, including those of the officers themselves."
Federal judge Mr Witzel was little-known before surging to victory as part of the "Bolsonaro wave".
The new president's proposals include relaxing gun-control laws so "good people" can take justice into their own hands.