13-Year-Old Kills 2 Staff in Rio Branco School Shooting

A 13-year-old student opened fire at Instituto Sao Jose public school in Rio Branco, the capital of Brazil's northwestern Acre state, on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, killing two female staff members at the scene and wounding another staff member and an 11-year-old girl student, authorities reported.

The boy, a current pupil at the junior high school, entered the building and fired several shots in a hallway leading to the principal's office using a .380-caliber pistol owned by his stepfather, according to Lieutenant Colonel Felipe Russo of the Acre military police. He surrendered to officers shortly after the attack and was detained, along with his stepfather. Police have identified other students who may have cooperated with the attacker and launched an investigation.

The injured student was shot in the leg, officials said. Victims' identities have not been released. Witnesses described chaos as students sought safety. Eduardo Rodrigues Cavalcante, a 19-year-old receptionist at a hotel next to the school, heard gunshots and screaming. "The wall is six meters high, and only one person managed to jump over and take refuge here in the hotel. The other people were left on the school roof...