Pair arrested over plot to bomb Lady Gaga’s Brazil concert with ‘improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails’
POLICE have arrested a man and teen over a plot to bomb a Lady Gaga concert on Copacabana beach in Brazil.
The pair planned to carry out an attack at the Poker Face singer’s biggest show ever using improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails.
Rio de Janeiro cops identified the bomb threat at Lady Gaga’s concert on Saturday, according to Globo.
As part of the joint operation with the Ministry of Justice and Public Security – known as “Operation Fake Monster” – the police raided nine addresses across Brazilian cities including Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.
Here they found a number of suspicious electronic devices as well as other materials.
One man – who was allegedly the leader of the group – was arrested for the illegal possession of a firearm in Rio Grande do Sul.
While a teenager was arrested for storing child pornography in Rio.
The police said the group believed to be behind the shocking plot operated online and spread hate speech against children, teenagers and the LGBT community.
It also promoted the radicalisation of teenagers, encouraged self-harm and shared violent content including paedophilia and hate crimes.
The group is thought to have been recruiting participants – including teenagers – to carry out attacks.
Investigations suggest that the suspected bomb plot was seen by those involved as a “collective challenge” to make themselves known on social media.
An estimated 2.1 million people attended Lady Gaga‘s free show on Saturday marking the largest show of the pop star’s career.
The concert was paid for by the city in a bid to boost the economy – with 500,000 tourists travelling to watch the icon.
The show was the first time Lady Gaga had played in Brazil since 2012 after she was forced to cancel an appearance in 2017 due to health issues.
The massive crowd also broke a Rio de Janeiro record set last year by Madonna which drew 1.6 million to Copacabana.