By Maira Magro
The mayor of Santa Branca, São Paulo, Odair Leal da Rocha Júnior (PMDB), threatened a crew for the Record TV network that was trying to interview him about alleged corruption in his administration, the station reports. Later that day, the mayor was arrested under suspicion of dealing drugs.
Over the weekend, the team was reportedly threatened by Rocha Júnior for following his car in an attempt to interview him. The crew complained to the police, but the mayor claims that the news van forced him to stop his car on the street, Record adds.
The police checked out both cars and found more almost 100 grams of cocaine in the mayor’s vehicle, leading to his arrest. Rocha Júnior says he was framed and has since been released by the court pending trial, VNews adds.
Note from the editor: This story was originally published by the Knight Center’s blog Journalism in the Americas, the predecessor of LatAm Journalism Review.
