Far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, a former army captain who also defends the use of force against suspects, has repeatedly said that "a good criminal is a dead criminal". He and Mr Witzel have supported changes in legislation that would protect officers from prosecution if they kill suspects.
Mr Bolsonaro said criminals would "die in the streets like cockroaches" if the changes were approved. The proposals need to be approved in both houses of the Brazilian Congress to become law, but no date for a vote to take place has been announced.
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