A young man has had both his feet amputated after he was injured by an explosive device left by a criminal gang that carried out a mega-raid on a number of bank branches in a city centre.
At least 20 heavily-armed criminals carried out the mega-raid in the Brazilian city of Aracatuba in the early hours of Monday, 30th August.
According to the authorities, the criminals, who robbed two bank branches and damaged another while using local residents as human shields, left 98 explosive devices across the city.
One of the devices, which are triggered by motion sensors, was set off when the unnamed 25-year-old man, who was cycling through the area, saw it and thought it was a mobile phone.
The device exploded when he went to pick it up, and his hands were also injured in the blast. He suffered deep cuts to his fingers, which, unlike his feet, doctors were able to save.
Doctors also had to remove several pieces of shrapnel from the young man’s body, mostly from his legs. He remains hospitalised in a serious condition.
Another four people were injured during the two-hour-long heist and admitted to hospital.
A police tactical unit detonated 100 kilogrammes (220 lbs) of unexploded explosive devices planted by the gang across the city in a landfill on Tuesday, 31st August.
A COVID-19 vaccination centre had to be closed on Monday, and given the city is also a regional distribution point, the nearby city of Birigui also had to cancel all vaccinations on the same day.
Following the mega-raid in which the criminals traded gunfire with the police, the criminals fled, stealing cars from residents and setting other vehicles on fire.
Two residents and one criminal were shot dead in the assault. The residents have been named as personal trainer Marcio Victor, who is the son of a police investigator, and petrol station owner Renato Bortolucci, who was shot while filming the gang members firing their weapons. He leaves behind a wife and two daughters.
The criminal shot dead has been named as 39-year-old Jorge Carlos de Melo.
Two of the injured taken to hospital are under police escort, as they are suspected of taking part in the assault.
The injured were identified as the following:
A 28-year-old male, who was shot in the abdomen. His condition is stable, and he remains under police escort.
A 31-year-old male, who was shot in the arms and face. His condition is serious.
A 38-year-old male, who was shot in the legs and arms and grazed on the head. His condition is serious, and he remains under police escort.
A 25-year-old male, who was injured by an explosive device. He had both feet amputated, and his condition is serious.
A 45-year-old male, who was shot in the gluteal region. He was medicated and has been discharged.
It was not reported how much money the gang stole.
The police have since seized seven cars used by the criminals in an area of forest. At least one of the vehicles was armoured and adapted to be able to fire shots from inside with a machine gun.
The hunt for the suspects continues.
