CNN
—
Two people arrested on suspicion of planning an attack at a Lady Gaga concert in Rio de Janeiro were targeting LGBTQ+ people, police said on Sunday.
According to the Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro, the pair had attempted to “recruit” people, including teenagers, to carry out coordinated attacks at Saturday’s concert, using improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails. The goal of the planned attack, according to police, was “gaining notoriety on social media.”
Meanwhile, in a separate development following police searches at nine addresses across Brazil, a third person who allegedly planned to carry out a “satanist ritual by killing a child or a baby” during the concert was charged with terrorism offenses, according to Brazilian police.
Roughly 2.1 million concert goers attended the free performance at Rio’s Copacabana beach, for what was Gaga’s first show in Brazil since 2012. The suspects mainly wanted to target LGBTQ+ people attending the concert, police said.
Gaga is a staunch advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, having previously told a rally at World Pride NYC that she would “take a bullet” for them. Last month, Gaga said that people “filled with hatred and ignorance… should be looking up to the queer community and following and learning about love, and learning about grace, learning about kindness.”
The suspects were part of an online hate group that worked to radicalize young people, police said. They also promoted “the dissemination of hate crimes, self-harm, pedophilia and violent content,” police added.
Those arrested posed as “Little Monsters,” the name given to fans of Lady Gaga, to try and recruit people online to carry out the coordinated attacks, according to Brazil’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security. Because of this, the police named their plan to thwart the bomb plot “Operation Fake Monster.”
The alleged leader of the group was arrested for illegal possession of a firearm, while a teenager connected to the foiled attack was arrested for possession of child pornography.
Fifteen search and seizure warrants were served against nine targets across Brazil, according to police. One of those searched was the man who allegedly planned on killing a child or a baby during the concert, as he claimed that Gaga was a satanist and he wanted to “respond in the same way,” according to police officer Maria Luiza Machado. He was charged with terrorism and inducing crime, police added.
Two of the search warrants were a result of coordinated actions with the US Consulate, who warned Brazilian authorities about potential threats, according to the Rio de Janeiro Civil Police.
A spokesperson for Lady Gaga told CNN on Sunday that there were “no known safety concerns” prior to the superstar’s concert.
“We learned about this alleged threat via media reports this morning,” the spokesperson’s statement to CNN read.
“Prior to and during the show, there were no known safety concerns, nor any communication from the police or authorities to Lady Gaga regarding any potential risks. Her team worked closely with law enforcement throughout the planning and execution of the concert and all parties were confident in the safety measures in place.”
Police said in a statement that they carried out their operation “with discretion and precision” to avoid “panic or distortion of information among the population.”
Dani Morera Trettin, one of the millions of Gaga fans that attended the concert, told CNN’s Julia Vargas Jones that he was glad that the police didn’t tell the public about the threat as it “could have caused some major panic.”
He said that the fact that the group actively wanted to target the LGBTQ+ population “left a bitter taste in my mouth,” but emphasized that Gaga “bringing queer joy to Rio de Janeiro” was an important statement “as the world turns more conservative.”
On Sunday, Specialized Police Chief Andre Neves said at a press conference that, in the last three weeks, police have prevented many crimes that were planned on the “deep web.”
“The population can be tranquil as there’s an ongoing intelligence work over these groups. Whether they involve hate crimes, religiously motivated crimes, or attacks – all (of) them will respond for their crimes,” he said.
In a post on Instagram, Lady Gaga thanked those who turned up to her Copacabana performance, writing that “nothing could prepare me for the feeling I had during last night’s show – the absolute pride and joy I felt singing for the people of Brazil.”
Alongside photos of her performance, Gaga wrote that “the sight of the crowd during my opening songs took my breath away. Your heart shines so bright, your culture is so vibrant and special, I hope you know how grateful I am to have shared this historical moment with you.”
Last May, an estimated 1.6 million people attended a free Madonna concert on the same beach, braving temperatures that exceeded 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius) to gather for the show.
At the time, Rio’s state and city governments said they spent 20 million reais ($3.9 million) on the Madonna concert, while the rest was financed by private sponsors.
