The metropolitan area of Sao Paulo woke up this Wednesday immersed in chaos and with considerable fear: a truck was hijacked and its driver was forced to cross it on the road to block the Rodoanel, the main ring road of the Brazilian city, one of the most populated in the southern hemisphere. Inside, they left the driver connected to a suspected bomb. Panic spread and mile-long traffic jams formed for hours until the bomb squad confirmed that the bomb was fake. Congestion reached 600 kilometers at 8:40 a.m., according to the Traffic Engineering Society of São Paulo.
The incident began at dawn, when the truck driver called the police to report that he had been the victim of a robbery. He claimed three men kidnapped him and forced him across the truck. At first, on the other end of the phone, they believed it was a psychotic break, due to the man’s hasty sentences. But shortly afterwards the attackers of the Special Tactics Action Group (Gate) verified that there was some basis.
The truck’s windshield was damaged. Inside, the driver was motionless, with his arms crossed and hands tied, and connected with red cables to a suspected foil-covered bomb placed on a bucket. Security protocols were immediately activated: a helicopter and dogs arrived to inspect the bomb. Ultimately it turned out to be false. A police officer managed to get the truck driver out of the cockpit, who as soon as he set foot on the asphalt released all the accumulated tension and fainted, collapsing to the ground. He was taken to a nearby hospital and, although there is no further information on his state of health, in principle his life is not in danger.
The truck was crossing Brazil. He had left the northern state of Acre, on the border with Bolivia, and was heading towards the industrial city of São Bernardo do Campo, outside Sao Paulo. According to the local press, he was not carrying any goods when he was robbed.
As the hours passed, the truck blocking the highway did nothing but increase the traffic jams, which were already frequent early in the morning approaching Sao Paulo. The accident occurred at kilometer 44 of Rodonael, near the town of Itapecerica da Serra. After hours of chaos, at ten o’clock the truck was moved and the passage to the vehicles was unblocked.
