MFM Minisode 509

Georgia Hardstark (0:16)

Hello.

Karen Kilgariff (0:17)

And welcome.

Georgia Hardstark (0:18)

To My Favorite Murder.

Karen Kilgariff (0:19)

The mini-sode.

Georgia Hardstark (0:20)

That's right. We read you stories, you listen to them, and then maybe you write your own in for fun.

Karen Kilgariff (0:25)

You know, it's like a casual agreement of content churning.

Georgia Hardstark (0:31)

That you've never consented to.

Karen Kilgariff (0:34)

You want to go first?

Georgia Hardstark (0:35)

Yeah. Okay. My first one is called The Brazilian Boogeyman. Just starts. I was born and raised in Brazilia, Brazil's capital. I think I'm saying that right.

I have a Brazilia story for you that has everything. A family massacre, a massive manhunt, the Brazilian wilderness, a guy who seemed to disappear into thin air. And because apparently we cannot have a Brazilian true crime story without some seasoning, rumors that he made a deal with the devil and was basically fucking magical.

Karen Kilgariff (1:01)

Wow.

Georgia Hardstark (1:02)

In 2021, mid-COVID madness, the entire region was introduced to a man named Lazaro Barbosa. For about three weeks, it felt like the entire country was looking for him. In June 2021, Lazaro was accused of killing four members of a family at their rural property in an area about 40 minutes outside central Brasilia.

He fled into the Sahado, the huge savanna-like wilderness surrounding Brasilia.

The Sahado is dense scrub, tall grass, trees, rivers, rocky terrain and enormous stretches of land where you can disappear if you know what you're doing. Apparently, Lazaro knew exactly what he was doing. For 20 days, he stayed ahead of the police. More than 270 officers from different police and federal agencies were involved in the search. There were helicopters, drones, tracking dogs, roadblocks and news crews following the whole thing, and somehow this one guy kept getting away.

He crossed rivers to throw off the dogs, moved between rural properties, stole cars, took people hostage, and allegedly committed additional crimes while he was on the run. Every time the police thought they had him surrounded, he disappeared again. And then something fascinating happened. Lazaro stopped being just a dangerous fugitive. He became a legend. People in the area were terrified, and rumors started spreading that he had supernatural powers. Some people said he made a pact with the devils. Other claimed he could disappear into the woods, turn invisible, or somehow transform himself so police couldn't find him. Obviously, there was no evidence of any of this, but when you've got hundreds of police officers, helicopters, dogs and drones looking for one guy, and he keeps disappearing into the Brazilian wilderness, reality starts to feel like folklore. The media coverage was also insane. It became this bizarre national obsession. People were afraid to leave their homes. Rural families were locking themselves inside. Some people even left the area because they were so afraid he'd show up at their property. And then after 20 days, it finally ended. Lizarro was located in a city just outside Brasilia. He exchanged gunfire with police, was shot and died, and just like that, the manhunt was over.

The whole thing reminded me a little of Richard Ramirez. Not because their crimes were the same, because they absolutely weren't, but because of what happened to the criminal's image. Richard Ramirez became almost mythical while he was still at large. The media turned him into the Night Stalker, and people became obsessed with where he was and when he would strike next. Lizarro became something similar in Brazil. He became bigger than the individual crimes. He became a boogeyman. Honestly, if you've ever been around Brasilia, you understand why the setting made this so terrifying. The Ceja do is beautiful, but it's huge. You can be relatively close to the city and suddenly feel like you're in the middle of nowhere. The idea of someone dangerous disappearing into that landscape, terrifying. Add Brazilian folklore, sensationalist television, social media, and three weeks of everyone asking, where the fuck is Lazaru? And suddenly you've got a true crime story that starts feeling like a campfire legend.

Anyway, Brasilia says hi.

SSDGM, Lorena. Like Lauren, but with a Latin rolled R and an A at the end. Lorena.

Karen Kilgariff (4:14)

Lorena.

Georgia Hardstark (4:15)

Lorena.

Karen Kilgariff (4:16)

Lorena. Wow.

Georgia Hardstark (4:18)

I know, I never heard of that.

Karen Kilgariff (4:20)

Never heard of it. Also, sorry to say, never knew, well, of course never knew that Brasilia was the capital of Brazil. But then also that there was like this surrounding landscape. Like that sounds amazing.

Georgia Hardstark (4:34)

Yeah.

Oh, the insects though. Oh my God.

Karen Kilgariff (4:38)

And that really big Jesus. So big.

Georgia Hardstark (4:41)

Insects and Jesus everywhere.