Huge Shootout Between Brazilian Cops And Robbers Leaves 25 Gang Members Dead

A huge gunfight between cops and robbers has left 25 gang members suspected of bank robberies dead.

The joint operation by the Military Police (PM), the Federal Highway Police (PRF) and the Special Police Operations Battalion (BOPE) took place in the city of Varginha in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais on Sunday, 31st October.

An astonishing 25 men believed to belong to gangs specialising in bank robberies were left dead in two separate confrontations.

One of the gang members murdered in Varginha, Minas Gerais in Brazil in October 2021. (Newsflash)

According to the PRF, the first confrontation occurred when the suspects attacked the PRF and PM teams, resulting in 18 suspects dying at the scene.

The remaining gang members were then found on a farm and seven further suspects died following heavy exchange of gunfire.

The police seized countless illicit items including 26 weapons that included war-grade long guns, rifles and grenades, and 12 stolen vehicles from both scenes.

One of the gang members murdered in Varginha, Minas Gerais in Brazil in October 2021. (Newsflash)

All of the deceased were reported as men between the ages of 25 and 40.

As reported in local media including G1, the PRF had been investigating the gang for several months.

The gang is believed to have carried out bank robberies in the cities of Uberaba, Aracatuba and Criciuma in the states of Minas Gerais, Sao Paulo and Santa Catarina respectively.

One of the gang members murdered in Varginha, Minas Gerais in Brazil in October 2021. (Newsflash)

At the time of the confrontations in which no police officers or civilians were killed, the gang was allegedly preparing another assault on a bank in Varginha.

The governor of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema, and the Minister of Justice, Anderson Torre, have both taken to social media to praise the police’s actions.