Solved case · 2022
Also known as murder of Genivaldo de Jesus · Genivaldo de Jesus's murder
The short answer
On 25 May 2022, Genivaldo de Jesus Santos, a 38-year-old Black man with schizophrenia, died after Federal Highway Police officers restrained him during a traffic stop in Umbaúba, Sergipe, Brazil, and placed him in a vehicle into which a gas canister was thrown. Three officers were later convicted for his killing.
No one's coverage is attached to this file yet.
Know great coverage of this case?
A documentary, a podcast episode, a careful long-form video. Suggest it and an editor will review it before it appears here.
Suggest coverage for Killing of Genivaldo de JesusOn 25 May 2022, at around midnight local time, Federal Highway Police (PRF) agents stopped Genivaldo de Jesus Santos on his motorbike on the BR-101 highway in Umbaúba, in the southern part of the Brazilian state of Sergipe, reportedly because he was not wearing a helmet. Santos, 38, was retired due to a schizophrenia diagnosis and had been on controlled psychiatric medication for twenty years. He was married with a seven-year-old son and an 18-year-old stepson.
According to witnesses, including his nephew Wallison de Jesus, Santos initially complied with police commands. During the stop, an officer asked him to lift his shirt; Santos said he was carrying psychiatric medication and had a prescription. Witness videos show officers searching him and swearing at him, after which he became upset and was knocked down and immobilized, with one officer's leg placed on his neck. Despite the nephew informing police that his uncle was schizophrenic, reinforcements were called. Witnesses said Santos was then subjected to pepper spray, kicks, and stomps over a period of roughly thirty minutes.
Santos was placed in the back of a police vehicle with the boot lid held against him, and officers threw a gas canister inside the vehicle, producing visible white smoke. After he stopped moving and screaming, officers closed the vehicle and left the scene. He was taken to a police station, found unconscious, and then transported to José Nailson Moura Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Brazil's Forensic Medical Institute (IML) attributed his death to mechanical asphyxia and acute respiratory failure.
In an official statement, the PRF said Santos had "actively resisted" and that "immobilization techniques and instruments of less offensive potential" had been used. The statement did not address the use of the gas canister inside the locked vehicle. The PRF opened a disciplinary procedure and removed the officers involved; the Federal Police, the Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF), and the Federal Senate's Human Rights Commission also opened inquiries. Brazil's Minister of Justice at the time, Anderson Torres, ordered federal investigations into the incident.
The case drew international attention, occurring exactly two years after the murder of George Floyd in the United States, with commentators drawing comparisons between the two deaths. Human Rights Watch and the United Nations Human Rights Office for South America both called for thorough investigations. Protests took place in Umbaúba, Brasília, and São Paulo, and the case was covered by numerous international outlets, including Reuters and BBC News.
On 7 December 2024, three of the officers involved — Paulo Rodolpho Lima Nascimento, William de Barros Noia, and Kleber Nascimento Freitas — were convicted and sentenced to prison terms ranging from 23 to 28 years for Santos's killing.
Genivaldo de Jesus Santos is stopped by Federal Highway Police on the BR-101 highway in Umbaúba, Sergipe; he is restrained, allegedly assaulted, and placed in a police vehicle into which a gas canister is thrown. He is later found unconscious and pronounced dead at hospital.
Santos's body is transported to Aracaju and released by the Forensic Medical Institute; he is buried in Santa Luzia do Itanhy. The PRF announces removal of the officers involved. Protests occur in Umbaúba.
Federal Police open an inquiry; protests take place in Brasília in front of PRF headquarters and in São Paulo.
The Regional Office for the Rights of the Citizen in Sergipe opens investigative proceedings; the Federal Council of the OAB and OAB Sergipe request precautionary arrest of those involved; a further protest is organized by the black movement and human rights activists.
Officers Paulo Rodolpho Lima Nascimento, William de Barros Noia, and Kleber Nascimento Freitas are convicted and sentenced to between 23 and 28 years imprisonment for Santos's killing.
Victims first. Every legal label is set from public records and court outcomes, not from the prose.
38-year-old Black man with schizophrenia who died after being restrained and gassed inside a police vehicle by Federal Highway Police officers in Umbaúba, Sergipe.[3]
Federal Highway Police officer convicted and sentenced to between 23 and 28 years imprisonment for Genivaldo de Jesus Santos's killing.[3]
Federal Highway Police officer convicted and sentenced to between 23 and 28 years imprisonment for Genivaldo de Jesus Santos's killing.[3]
Federal Highway Police officer convicted and sentenced to between 23 and 28 years imprisonment for Genivaldo de Jesus Santos's killing.[3]
Officially named a person of interest by Brazilian federal prosecutors; not charged. He was one of five Federal Highway Police officers linked to the operation and signed the incident report, but unlike the three officers who were indicted and later convicted of Genivaldo's killing, he was not indicted.[3]
Officially named a person of interest by Brazilian federal prosecutors; not charged. He was one of five Federal Highway Police officers linked to the operation and signed the incident report, but unlike the three officers who were indicted and later convicted of Genivaldo's killing, he was not indicted.[3]
From the record
Coverage is not a source: every fact in this file rests on the records below.
Are you family of someone named in this file? Corrections and removal requests from victims’ families are prioritized.
Ipatinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil · 1963
On October 7, 1963, military police in Ipatinga, Minas Gerais, opened fire on striking Usiminas steelworkers protesting poor working conditions and degrading searches, officially killing eight people—including an infant—and wounding 79, though the true toll is disputed.
Credit: Agência BrasilCC BY 3.0 BRSourceSOLVEDListenTasso da Silveira Municipal School, Realengo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil · 2011
On 7 April 2011, a 23-year-old former student killed 12 children and wounded 22 others at Tasso da Silveira Municipal School in Realengo, Rio de Janeiro, before being shot by police and dying by suicide.
SOLVEDListenRio Branco, Acre, Brazil · 2017
Bruno Borges, a Brazilian student, vanished from his home in Rio Branco, Acre, on March 27, 2017, leaving behind encrypted writings and a statue of Giordano Bruno; he returned five months later, and police said there were strong indications the disappearance had been a scheme to market his books.
Credit: Otávio Astor Vaz CostaCC BY-SA 4.0SourceONGOINGListenCarrefour store, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil · 2020
João Alberto Silveira Freitas, a 40-year-old Black man, was beaten and killed by asphyxiation by security guards at a Carrefour store in Porto Alegre, Brazil, on the night before Black Consciousness Day 2020, triggering nationwide anti-racism protests.
Credit: HenriqueCrangCC BY-SA 4.0SourceSOLVEDListenEstácio, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil · 2018
Rio de Janeiro city councilwoman Marielle Franco and her driver Anderson Gomes were shot dead on 14 March 2018. Former police officers Ronnie Lessa and Élcio Vieira de Queiroz confessed and were convicted in 2024; brothers Domingos and Chiquinho Brazão were later convicted by the Supreme Federal Court in 2026 for ordering the killing.
Credit: Gustavo1488Public domainSourceSOLVEDListenAracruz, Espírito Santo, Brazil · 2022
On November 25, 2022, a 16-year-old former student shot four people to death, including a 12-year-old girl, and wounded eleven others at two schools in Aracruz, Espírito Santo, Brazil, before being arrested at his family's home hours later.
