Pele, arguably the greatest soccer player in history, was robbed earlier this month in his native Brazil. While stuck in traffic in the coastal town of Santos, near Sao Paulo, the Brazilian soccer Megastar, and one of the most famous athletes in the history of organized sports, was surrounded in his chauffeur driven car (not always the best idea in Brazil) by a gang of ten youths wielding knives and guns.

According to the Brazilian magazine Veja, who first published reports of the crime, Pele yelled out “It’s Pele!”, in Portuguese, to the assailants in the hopes they would let him go. But the bandits were unimpressed and hit the car, demanding he hand over his possessions. Pele was forced to part with a gold chain, a watch and a cell phone. Is nothing sacred?

While Brazil is experiencing an economic upswing and the left wing Workers’ Party government of President Luiz Ignacio “Lula” da Silva is making major strides to improve the lot of its underclasses, the country still has enormous problems with poverty and one of the largest disparities of wealth of any nation on the planet. You can takepart in helping the disadvantaged in Brazil by learning more about Viva Favela, an NGO offshoot of Viva Rio which is working to improve conditions in the favelas, the shantytown neighborhoods in Brazilian cities inhabited by its poorest residents.

LINKS:

Daily Telegraph: Pele Robbed at Gunpoint in Brazil

London Times: Pele Robbed at Gunpoint

The Guardian: Pele robbed of his jewellery at gunpoint by street gang