Brazil Murder Suspect Jorlan Lopes da Silva Arrested After 48-Hour Hunt as Police Probe 16 Killings in Three Months

Brazilian police arrested murder suspect Jorlan Lopes da Silva, 33, in Mulungu, Paraíba, after a 48‑hour manhunt, as investigators probe his alleged links to 16 killings committed over roughly three months.

The arrest on Sunday, 13 September, followed reports that Lopes da Silva had been evading police while disguised as a woman and carrying a two‑year‑old child. Police say investigators have gathered evidence linking him to 16 homicides since the end of May, while further deaths are being examined.

Jorlan Lopes da Silva Arrested After 48-Hour Search

Police had been searching for Lopes da Silva across the north‑eastern Brazilian state before locating him in Mulungu. O Globo and iG Último Segundo reported that the operation lasted about 48 hours before officers detained him.

According to investigators cited in the reports, Lopes da Silva was wearing a dress, wig, women's sandals and sunglasses, and had nail polish on his hands. He was also carrying a toddler who was not his child, which police believe formed part of an attempt to avoid recognition.

Officers identified Lopes da Silva after his dress shifted and exposed a tattoo, according to accounts attributed to investigators.

Police said he had earlier been carrying a child of approximately two years who was not related to him, but had left the child at the property before officers identified and arrested him. The circumstances surrounding the child remain under investigation.

Police have linked Lopes da Silva to 16 killings that they believe took place from the end of May onwards.

The investigation remains open, and the available reporting does not state that he has been convicted of any of those deaths or establish that all of the suspected cases are connected beyond the police inquiry.

Jorlan Lopes da Silva Investigated Over 16 Killings

Authorities are now examining whether the 33‑year‑old may be connected to further cases beyond the 16 killings already under investigation. Local reports said Lopes da Silva allegedly told police that he had killed as many as 80 people over about two decades.

UOL reported that Lopes da Silva claimed his first killing occurred when he was 13, after his father was fatally stabbed. He allegedly told investigators that the killing was carried out in revenge for his father's death.

Those statements remain allegations reported after his arrest rather than findings established in court. Police are continuing to examine the claims and determine whether they correspond with known or unresolved cases, a process that may require investigators to compare his statements with records, locations and physical evidence.

Investigators are also examining Lopes da Silva's possible involvement in the death of a young woman whose body was located after he allegedly told police where it was buried.

Authorities have not established publicly whether that case forms part of the 16 homicides currently linked to him.

Case Remains Under Investigation

The arrest has shifted the case from a manhunt to the task of testing Lopes da Silva's alleged statements against evidence.

That distinction matters because his reported claims about 80 killings are substantially broader than the 16 deaths police are currently examining.

The reports did not make clear whether formal charges had been filed following his arrest. Police were continuing to investigate the additional cases, the burial site and the circumstances surrounding the toddler who was with Lopes da Silva when he was detained.

No further details on the child's identity or relationship to the suspect were included in the reports provided.