Lady Gaga's free concert in Copacabana Beach at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Saturday (May 3) was the target of a bomb attack, according to Brazilian police.
Gaga's performance was in front of an estimated 2.5 million fans, marking the highest-attended concert by a female artist in history, surpassing Madonna's concert at the same venue last year in front of 1.6 million people.
On Sunday (May 4), the Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro state said they managed to foil a bomb plot that was orchestrated by a group promoting hate speech and the radicalization of teenagers, including self-harm and violent content as a form of social belonging.
In a statement, the police revealed they had carried out more than a dozen search-and-seizure warrants across the states of Rio de Janeiro, Mato Grosso, Rio Grande do Sul and Sao Paulo to learn that "the suspects were recruiting participants, including minors, to carry out co-ordinated attacks using improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails."
The Justice Ministry added that the recruiters disguised themselves as members of the "Little Monsters," a nickname used by Gaga's global fan base.
The ministry's Cyber Operations Lab was tipped off from Rio state police intelligence, which according to a report, uncovered digital cells that encouraged the teenagers involved to commit violent behaviour through coded language and extremist symbolism.
Police arrested the alleged leader of the group in the state of Rio Grande do Sul for illegal possession of a firearm. They also detained a teenager in Rio de Janeiro for storing child pornography.
The Associated Press reports the authorities chose not to reveal any details about the alleged plot at the time of the concert to in order to “avoid panic” and “the distortion of information.”
A spokesperson for Lady Gaga said the pop star only “learned about this alleged threat via media reports [Sunday] morning. Prior to and during the show, there were no known safety concerns, nor any communication from the police or authorities to Lady Gaga regarding any potential risks.”
“Her team worked closely with law enforcement throughout the planning and execution of the concert and all parties were confident in the safety measures in place," the statement continued.
In a post on Instagram, Gaga thanked the fans in attendance, writing, "Nothing could prepare me for the feeling I had during last night’s show—the absolute pride and joy I felt singing for the people of Brazil... Thank you Rio for waiting for me to come back. Thank you little monsters all over the world. I love you. I will never forget this moment."