A planned bombing at Lady Gaga’s historic performance, which drew over 2 million people to Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach on Saturday, was stopped by police.
According to local authorities, the scheme was planned by an organization that advocates hate speech and radicalization of youth, including violent content and self-harm as a means of “social belonging.”
The American pop icon’s free performance drew 2.1 million spectators, according to official figures.
According to a police statement, “the suspects were recruiting participants, including minors, to carry out coordinated attacks using improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails.”
According to the Justice Ministry, the recruiters claimed to be from the “Little Monsters,” Gaga’s international fan network.
The operation was based on a report from the ministry’s Cyber Operations Lab after Rio State police intelligence provided a tip.
