Bolsonaro backer kills Lula fan as Brazil election tensions mount
- Rafael Silva de Oliveira, 24, has been charged with killing Benedito Cardoso dos Santos, 42, by stabbing him with a knife
- The attack took place as tempers frayed during an argument over support for the president and his leftist rival
A supporter of far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro stabbed to death a backer of leftist former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, authorities said on Friday, in the latest example of rising political tensions ahead of the coming election.
The violence happened in the west-central state of Mato Grosso, after tempers frayed during an argument over support for the two candidates. Bolsonaro trails Lula in the polls in an election riven by intense polarisation.
According to the police report of the incident, Rafael Silva de Oliveira, 24, killed Benedito Cardoso dos Santos, 42, by stabbing him with a knife. The suspect was taken to the police station, where he confessed and was charged.
Speaking with reporters in Rio de Janeiro on Friday, Lula commented on the stabbing, saying there was a “climate of hatred in the electoral process which is completely abnormal”.
Lula also suggested law enforcement should investigate whether such incidents “had been ordered, or guided, or if it is a political strategy”.
