Eight armed criminals intercepted two buses carrying students from Escola Eleva on Monday morning on the Linha Vermelha highway in Rio de Janeiro. The incident occurred shortly after 9:40 a.m. near the Trevo das Missões in Cordovil, while the students were on an excursion heading toward Vassouras.
According to reports, the attackers were armed with pistols and stones. The criminals reportedly abandoned the robbery after realizing children were on the vehicles, but they broke the driver’s cabin windows and took the keys after forcing the drivers to block the road with the buses to create barricades.
Student Evacuation and Traffic Disruptions
The students were transferred to two reserve buses that were also traveling toward the South Fluminense region. These vehicles continued the trip via the Washington Luís highway under the escort of a patrol car from the 59th DP. A third bus took longer to be released, during which time police from the 59th DP maintained telephone contact with a responsible adult on board.
The attack caused a complete paralysis of traffic on the Linha Vermelha for approximately one hour. Following the initial incident, the lane heading toward Baixada Fluminense experienced intermittent closures near the Washington Luís highway. Traffic was fully reopened around 10:45 a.m., although flow remained slow in the area. After the release of the buses, criminals from Parque das Missões threw objects onto the road to once again block the path toward Washington Luís.
Investigation and Government Response
Military Police stated that the operation was carried out by members of the Terceiro Comando Puro (TCP) criminal faction. The order for the interception was allegedly given by a criminal known as Peixão, who is identified as a faction leader and the creator of the Complexo de Israel in Rio’s North Zone.
The government stated that “all appropriate measures have been adopted to hold those involved accountable and ensure that similar episodes do not recur.”
The operation to secure the area involved reinforced policing from the Military Police, Civil Police, and the Municipal Guard.