Brazil police chase ends in shootout, suspect killed in Rio de Janeiro

A police pursuit in Rio de Janeiro ended in a shootout that left a suspect dead and a street closed in the city's South Zone on Wednesday, October 21, 2026.

According to the Civil Police, the suspect, identified as Luis Fernando Rodrigues dos Santos, rammed his car toward officers attempting to stop him on Rua São Clemente in Botafogo and fired a shot. Officers returned fire, fatally wounding him. A woman in the vehicle was hit by shrapnel and taken to a health unit. Authorities said dos Santos was a suspected leader of a criminal organization specializing in robberies in the South Zone and had 27 police records.

Police said the suspect was also under investigation for the attempted robbery of 81-year-old archaeologist Tânia Andrade Lima, who was shot during an assault in Leblon on October 15. The location of the suspect came from intelligence work supported by the CIVITAS license-plate monitoring system. One lane of Rua São Clemente was closed near Rua da Matriz, causing traffic delays.