Brazilian federal police arrested 10 suspects on July 21 who were allegedly preparing to carry out terrorist acts during the Rio Olympics, Minister of Justice Alexandre de Moraes told local media.
Authorities were issued 12 warrants for temporary 30-day arrests in 10 states, Brazilian media O Globo reported. The suspects were apprehended in São Paulo and Paraná and were allegedly recruited online by ISIS. Among the individuals arrested was a minor.
Brazilian intelligence detected that the group’s conversations on Telegram and WhatsApp went from simple comments and escalated to “preparatory acts.”
PF prende grupo que preparava atos terroristas na Olimpíada. https://t.co/tdpttkV8VY [@LauroJardim] #Rio2016 pic.twitter.com/eTRGoNIRmf
— Jornal O Globo (@JornalOGlobo) July 21, 2016
The suspects allegedly followed the same script as the Orlando and Paris attackers, according to news outlet Epoca.
Federal police in Brazil, under court approval, monitored messages exchanged by the group on social media, especially Facebook and Twitter. The suspects allegedly planned to obtain weapons to commit crimes in Brazil and abroad, Moraes said.
The arrests come a week after a deadly attack by a man driving a truck into crowds at a Bastille Day celebration in Nice, France, in which 84 were killed and 303 were injured.
The Olympics are set to begin on August 5 in Rio de Janeiro.
