The mother of Eduarda Cruz dos Santos, aged 7, reported that her daughter was fatally shot in the head in Nova Iguaçu, in Baixada Fluminense. The incident occurred after individuals, presenting themselves as police officers, invaded the family’s residence.
Visibly shaken, Thaís Iolanda da Cruz, the girl’s mother, described the horror experienced by the family. “They forced entry into our house, claiming to be members of BOPE and the police,” she said as she left the Baixada Fluminense Homicide Police Station, located in Belford Roxo.
The mother reported that the invaders were looking for specific people in the property. For investigators, the main line of investigation suggests that the child’s father was the criminals’ primary target. The use of this tactic, where criminals pose as authorities to invade homes, is a recurring pattern in criminal actions in the Baixada Fluminense region, complicating police operations and local security.
Thaís Iolanda narrated the desperate moment in which she tried to protect her daughter. She requested that the girl hide, but the tragedy was inevitable.
Amid tears, the mother detailed the sequence of events: “They continued to look for individuals inside the house. I asked my daughter to look for a hiding place, and she took shelter in the closet, under her clothes. She probably went out to check and was hit by the shot”, explained the woman, in tears.
Eduarda’s father attended the Baixada Fluminense Homicide Police Station to testify in the early afternoon, providing his testimony about the events.
Details about the death of the 7-year-old girl after being shot in Nova Iguaçu
In the early hours of this Monday (22), Eduarda Cruz dos Santos was taken to the General Hospital of Nova Iguaçu in extremely critical conditions, according to information from the Municipal Health Department.
Despite the emergency care provided at the hospital, the child suffered a cardiorespiratory arrest during the morning and could not resist the injuries, resulting in death.