The police approach in which a 22-year-old young man was killed, this Wednesday (20), in the capital of São Paulo, did not observe the gradual use of force, as determined by internal rules of the São Paulo Military Police (PM). The assessment was made by the São Paulo State Police ombudsman, Claudio Silva.
Medical student Marco Aurélio Cardenas Acosta, aged 22, was killed with a point-blank shot fired by police officer Guilherme Augusto Macedo, at around 2:50 am, on the steps of a hotel on Rua Cubatão, in Vila Mariana, south of the city. city.
“Tragedies like this with the young medical student are tragedies foretold. This succession of errors made by the police officers who responded to the incident demonstrates that the professionalization of our PM has fallen and, when this happens, absolutely no one is protected: it is a type of violence that can reach all social classes”, said Silva.
According to the ombudsman, “what was already frightening for the poor and peripheral people, now also presents itself as a threat to the lives of those who belong to the wealthiest layers of our society. The ideology of revenge, brutality and death affects everyone, without distinction of class or race.”
Approach images
Images from the hotel’s security camera show that the boy was shirtless when he entered the lobby. Macedo held the young man’s arm, who tried to free himself, while the other police officer kicked him. Afterwards, it is possible to see that the PM shoots towards the boy, who falls to the ground.
According to information from the State Secretariat of Public Security (SSP), Acosta struck the police vehicle, tried to escape and when approached, “attacked” the police officers and was injured. The boy was taken to Ipiranga hospital, but he did not survive the injury.
“There are other protocols to be adopted before the decision to pull the trigger, in this case against a young man who was shirtless and did not pose any risk to the physical integrity of the police officers, including because he was fleeing the approach, contrary to what the SSP note says, which states that he ‘attacked the police’, when the video shows that he ran away from the approach, for reasons that we will not know what they are”, highlighted the ombudsman.
The result, laments Silva, is yet another destroyed family. “Interrupted dreams, aborted trajectories, which add up to hundreds of other deaths, like the young Dr. Marco Aurélio Cardenas Acosta, who, about to graduate, would save many lives”, he said.
In a statement, the Medicina Anhembi Morumbi Academic Athletic Association expressed deep regret over the death of Marco Aurélio Cardenas Acosta. “In this moment of immense pain, we sympathize with his family, teammates and colleagues, who have lost not only a traveling companion, but also a friend. May his memory always be remembered with affection and may his trajectory inspire us all”, says the note.
