Police helicopter crash kills 8 in Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO - A helicopter from Brazil's Military Police crashed Tuesday in the central-western state of Goias, killing eight people aboard.

The crash site is about 30 km from Piranhas city. Among the victims is Aparecido Souza Alvez, the murder who killed seven people two weeks ago in the Goias state, police sources said.

The other victims include the pilot and copilot, two policemen and three experts.

The helicopter exploded in the air Tuesday afternoon as it was flying back from Doverlandia, where the mass murder occurred, to Goaiania, the capital city of Goias.

The cause of the incident is still under investigation.

Alvez, 23, had been charged with killing a farm owner and six others along with three accomplices in late April.