The Times reports:
The host of a Brazilian TV crime show has been accused of ordering a series of execution-style murders to snuff out rival drug traffickers and boost his own ratings. Police say that Wallace Souza, a former policeman who built a political career as the scourge of crime in the lawless Amazonas state, would feature their killings on his Canal Livre show.
For years the show had an uncanny knack for being the first on the scene, gathering graphic footage of the victims. Mr. Souza says it relied on good old-fashioned journalism: its staff had well-placed sources and constantly monitored police scanners for murder alerts.
The order to execute always came from the politician and his son, who then alerted the TV crews to get to the scene before the police, Thomaz Vasconcelos, head of intelligence for the state police force, told the Associated Press news agency.
Mr. Souza denied all the criminal allegations and called them absurd.