--- description: Gunmen near a slum in Rio de Janeiro ambushed three Swedish tourists and held one captive on Wednesday. None of the tourists were hurt. title: Gunmen in Rio Capture Swedish Tourist Before Olympics image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt869a7874ac5cc36e/6988a135428a9ec9c5cd3c77/rio-olympics-crime-soldiers-police-gunman-capture-tourists.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics](/tag/2016-rio-de-janiero-olympics/) ## 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Gunmen in Rio Capture Swedish Tourist Before Olympics by [Abigail Abrams](/author/abigail-abrams/) ## Abigail Abrams Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 4, 2016 7:43 PM CUT  A soldier patrols the perimeter fence around the Deodora Olympic sports complex during the build up to the Rio Olympic Games on July 30, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. A soldier patrols the perimeter fence around the Deodora Olympic sports complex during the build up to the Rio Olympic Games on July 30, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro.David Rogers—Getty Images by [Abigail Abrams](/author/abigail-abrams/) ## Abigail Abrams Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 4, 2016 7:43 PM CUT Gunmen near a slum in Rio de Janeiro [ambushed](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/gunmen-ambush-swiss-tourists-in-rio-during-photo-stop/2016/08/04/6426c0f4-8a9c-4bde-be90-2494bd51f394%5Fstory.html?tid=sm%5Ftw "undefined") three Swedish tourists and held one captive on Wednesday. None of the tourists were hurt, but the incident heightened fears about [crime in Olympics host city](http://time.com/4438822/rio-2016-olympics-mayor-eduardo-paes/ "undefined") just before the summer games are set to kick off. The tourists were headed to downtown Rio from a spot near the Olympic Park, the [Washington _Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/gunmen-ambush-swiss-tourists-in-rio-during-photo-stop/2016/08/04/6426c0f4-8a9c-4bde-be90-2494bd51f394%5Fstory.html?tid=sm%5Ftw "undefined") reports, when they stopped to take photos near the Complexo do Lins slum. A gunman captured one of the tourists, and the other two managed to escape and ask the police for help. Police later found the third tourist. Brazil has sent 88,000 soldiers to ensure safety during the Olympics, and Rio’s mayor [recently told TIME](http://time.com/4438822/rio-2016-olympics-mayor-eduardo-paes/ "undefined") he believes his city will be “the safest place in the world to come in August.” But with the Olympics set to begin Friday, Rio is [still struggling](http://time.com/3768709/rio-de-janeiro-2016-olympics/ "undefined") with security and environmental issues that could threaten the success of the games. Earlier this summer, Brazilian first responders protested at Rio’s airport and [warned visitors](http://time.com/4385639/rio-de-janeiro-protesters-warn-visitors-they-are-not-safe/ "undefined") they would not be safe. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4439512/rio-olympics-swedish-tourist-captured/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4439512/rio-olympics-swedish-tourist-captured/"},"headline":"Gunmen in Rio Capture Swedish Tourist Before Olympics","datePublished":"2016-08-04T19:43:05.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T09:59:42.196Z","description":"No one was harmed","url":"https://time.com/4439512/rio-olympics-swedish-tourist-captured/","keywords":["2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics","Crime","Rio de Janeiro","Summer Olympics"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt869a7874ac5cc36e/6988a135428a9ec9c5cd3c77/rio-olympics-crime-soldiers-police-gunman-capture-tourists.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Abigail Abrams","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/abigail-abrams/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt869a7874ac5cc36e/6988a135428a9ec9c5cd3c77/rio-olympics-crime-soldiers-police-gunman-capture-tourists.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Olympics - Previews - Day - 6","caption":"Olympics - Previews - Day - 6","creditText":"David Rogers—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/2016-rio-de-janiero-olympics/","name":"2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4439512/rio-olympics-swedish-tourist-captured/","name":"Gunmen in Rio Capture Swedish Tourist Before Olympics"}}]}] ```