Police indict 13 people for the death of a student who was electrocuted at a festival in Rio

The Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro (PCRJ) indicted 13 people for involvement in the death of young João Vinicius Ferreira Simões, aged 25, who died of electrocution at the “I Wanna Be Tour” festival, in the early hours of March 10 this year.

According to the investigation, concluded by the 32nd DP (Taquara), death was due to electropletion, which is the accidental exposure of the body to a lethal or non-lethal charge of electrical energy.

Among those indicted, nine are responsible for the crime of possible intent and intentional homicide, when there is the intention to kill, while another four are responsible for procedural fraud. Festival supervisors, coordinators, electricians, engineers, technical managers, owners and managers are among those involved.

In the investigations, expert reports and images from security cameras were analyzed. Several electrical installations in Riocentro, where the event took place, were not consistent with technical standards.

After João Vinicius' death, the place where the incident occurred was dismantled, which resulted in the crime of procedural fraud and made investigations more difficult.

Remember the case

Student João Vinícius Ferreira Simões, aged 25, died after being electrocuted during the “I Wanna Be Tour” festival, in the early hours of March 10.

Witnesses who were at the scene claim that the electrical discharge occurred when the young man pulled up to a food truck in the event's food court. At the IML, they informed the boy's mother, Roberta Ferreira, that he had the mark of an electrical conductor on his back, which would confirm the contact.