Assassins accused of shooting newlyweds to death in their bed in a botched drugs gang hit have been seized by police in Brazil.
They had spotted their trafficker target’s motorbike parked outside the couple’s home in Ponta Grossa, in the state of Parana, and burst into the property spraying bullets.
The victims, security guard Luiz Arthur Bach Xavier, 23, and 22-year-old cashier Rubiane Mayer, were killed as they slept, say police.
Officers found 15 spent bullet shells around their bed, according to local media.
Two suspects aged 20 and 26 were arrested on 14th May, eight months after the bloodbath, in possession of two 9mm handguns and 44 rounds of ammunition.
Lead Civil Police detective Luis Gustavo Timossi said the couple they are accused of killing had no criminal connections.
The Parana Civil Police said in a statement obtained by Newsflash: “The crime took place on 30th September 2023 in Ponta Grossa, in Campos Gerais.
“At the time of the events, the suspects invaded the couple’s residence and fired several firearms at the victims.
“Investigations showed that the criminals were seeking to kill another individual, who has a history of involvement in drug trafficking and on the night of the events, he had left his motorcycle parked in front of the victims’ house.”
Detective Timossi added: “Believing that it was such an individual who was in the residence, the criminals invaded the residence and ended up killing the victims, two young people who were recently married and who had no history of involvement in crimes.”
The suspects’ names have not been released.
