Steph Deschamps / March 8, 2023
A Brazilian considered the biggest serial killer of his country after a hundred murders and who spent 42 years in prison died riddled with bullets near Sao Paulo, announced Monday the authorities.
An investigation was opened after his death Sunday in Mogi das Cruzes, not far from the big metropolis.
"The victim was hit by gunfire and the suspects fled," said in a statement the Secretariat of Public Security of the State of Sao Paulo.
Pedro Rodrigues Filho, known as "Pedrinho Matador" (Little Pedro Killer), 68, had told his life story to various media outlets and in documentaries after his release from prison in 2018.
He had started a career on Youtube by talking about his unusual life or commenting on famous crimes and warning the youth against crime.
On the short video platform Kwai, he had become a star, with more than 267,000 subscribers.
Criminologist and author of the book "Serial Killers: Made in Brazil", Ilana Casoy, said that "Pedrinho" eliminated people he considered undesirable for society. The expert said she was impressed by the "joy, casualness and intelligence" of the serial killer she met.
It has come to fascinate people," said Casoy, quoted by the daily Folha de S.Paulo: "It is a reflection of the society we have (in Brazil), where only 10% of homicides are solved.