Woman's bra saves her from a bullet

It is the latest - but strangest - incidence of the accidental shootings that plague Brazil.

A black lace underwire bra may have saved a woman's life, according to a news report about a narrow escape from a robber's stray bullet. Images of Ms Ivete Medeiros' undergarment and the bullet apparently lodged inside were shown across the nation on Thursday, reported UK newspaper The Guardian.

Ms Medeiros, a merchant in the northern city of Belem, was reportedly hit by a stray round after she left a supermarket to investigate a disturbance on the other side of the road.

HOLD-UP

The commotion was caused by a hold-up.

News reports said the robber opened fire and a stray bullet hit her under her left breast. CCTV footage shows her staggering back into the store before being taken away for medical attention.

"It was not just the bra wiring, which softened (it) a little, but God who saved me," Ms Medeiros said, showing the small hole made in her blouse by the bullet.

Her husband told Brazil's Globo channel that he feared his wife had been killed because she had been shot in the heart.

He said all she felt was "a little burning sensation", thanks to "divine intervention".

Despite the unusual outcome in this case, stray bullets are a growing menace in Brazil, which is among the countries with the most gun killings. Last month, a four-year-old girl and a nine-year-old boy were among a dozen victims of stray bullets in Rio de Janeiro, where heavily-armed military police frequently engage in firefights with gangs.

According to the most recent police statistics, stray bullets hit 111 people in the city in 2013, up from 81 two years earlier, The Guardian reported.

Nationwide figures are harder to come by, but similar cases have been reported in several other cities.

In addition to the fatalities, at least 10 other people have been injured by stray bullets in recent days.

Community leaders have complained that a police crackdown on gangs is leading to gun battles that are catching innocent bystanders in the violence.

This article was first published on February 07, 2015.
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