Sao Paulo governor dismisses organized crime in explosions
Sao Paulo State Governor Claudio Lembo said on Tuesday that the series of accidents over the Christmas weekend were not related to organized crime gangs.
Lembo said that the explosion in a train of Sao Paulo Metropolitan Trains Company (CPTM) on Monday morning was caused by a liquid fuel which blew up when someone opened the box containing it. He regarded the blast as an act of vandalism.
Lembo said that the explosion on a subway train on Saturday morning was more specific, and police are still investigating the case carefully. "It seems to me that the two cases were not related to organized crime," said Lembo.
On Christmas Day, 16-year-old William Costa da Silva had 75 percent of his body burnt when a package exploded in the carriage he was in. Lembo said that CPTM had started an internal investigation into the cause of the explosion.
Also on Saturday, a homemade bomb blew up on Sao Paulo's metro green line. The explosion opened holes on the carriage's floor and ceiling, ruined seats and broke windows, but caused no injuries.
(Published by Xinhua, December 27, 2006)