Second time in a year convent has been robbed
MACEIO, Alagoas - An armed gang broke into the Queen of Peace Convent on Sunday evening. The convent is located in the Santa Amelia neighborhood, next to the Don Bosco House, another Catholic institution, in Maceió, Alagoas. The armed men asulted a group of nuns and stole cash, a laptop, TV and cellphones. This was the second assault on the convent in the past year.
After the robbery, the men fled the scene in a vehicle has not been found by police. Maria Jose Santana, 41, reported the crime to the Integrated Center for Social Defense Operations (CIODS). The assault is being investigated by officers from the 4th District Police Station (Lighthouse).
On August 22, 2010, four armed men broke into the same convent.
The robbers arrived in a red Ford Fiesta with Maceió license plate MUT-2962 saying that they had donations to deliver. After one of the nuns opened the gate to let the vehicle enter the grounds of the convent, four men got out and announced the robbery.
After the invasion, the gang asked that three nuns continue praying and took the other five nuns hostage. While one of the bandits held two nuns hostage each of the other three bandits dragged the remaining nuns out of the room demanding valuables.
Two men were arrested shortly after the robbery when the car they were driving was pulled over by suspicious police. Arrested without incident were: Murilo Laurentino Manoel dos Santos, 19, who was caught with a 765 pistol and $4,000 cash and J. Jose Benedito da Silva, 27, was found with a .38 caliber pistol.
Maceió is the capitol and the largest city in the coastal state of Alagoas, Brazil. The name "maceió" is of Indian origin, and designates the natural spontaneously courses of water which flow out of the soil. Most maceiós flow to the sea, but some get trapped and form lakes ("lagoas", in Portuguese).
There are plenty of maceiós and lakes in this part of Brazil; because of this, the city was named Maceió, and the State, Alagoas. The new Zumbi dos Palmares International Airport connects Maceió with many Brazilian cities and also operates some international flights. The city is home to the Federal University of Alagoas.
Maceió is home to numerous beaches, the color of sea varying from emerald green to blue; the water is always clear. The sand is white and there are many coconut plantations.
The Maceió sea has natural pools and reefs a few meters off the coast, that can be accessed by boat or raft sailings. The Mundaú lake is another option for sailing and bathing in transparent water.
Historical buildings include the Cathedral of Our Lady of Pleasures (1840), the Deodoro Theatre, the Municipal Market, the Historical Institute Museum and the Floriano Peixoto Palace, seat of Alagoas State government.
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Source(s) for this article: terra.com.br