Football legend Pele has been held at gun
point and robbed in full daylight by a group of drugged-out youths
on a Brazilian street, EFE news agency reported
Monday.
The robbery, which took place on June 13 but was
not made public until now, occurred near a slum in Guaruja town on
the southern coast of Sao Paulo Sunday when about 10 armed young
men surrounded Pele's car and robbed his gold chain, mobile phone
and a costly watch, media reports said.
The king of soccer, however, was not hurt by the drugged-out
robbers, the reports added.
The robbery took place when Pele was en route to
his beach house on the coast near Santos, where he played
professional soccer for nearly 20 years, the reports said quoting
the soccer star's spokesman.
According to the unnamed spokesman, the youths robbed the soccer
icon even after recognizing who he was.
Armed gangs often set up makeshift road blocks on Brazilian
roads, halting traffic and robbing motorists. The robberies usually
occur near slums, known as favela, where the thieves can easily
escape and hide from the police.
The police said that no complaint had been filed in the
incident.