A Brazilian judge known for tough sentences against drug gangs and death squads was killed early Friday in an ambush in Niteroi, near Rio de Janeiro, dpa reported. Police said Friday that Judge Patricia Acioly, 47, was killed in her car as she arrived at home. The as yet unidentified attackers were masked, they travelled in two cars and two motorcycles and fired at least 16 shots before escaping. Acioly had been the target of death threats for at least four years, although she had refused police protection for three years. She had made a name for herself as a judge with harsh sentences against the members of death squads who have killed at least 15 people in Sao Goncalo, near Niteroi.
