Brazilian police are taking next steps after the recent death of a Taylor Swift fan.
NBC News reported that officials launched an investigation into Time4Fun, the company responsible for organizing Swift’s Eras Tour stops in Rio de Janeiro. Swift, 33, performed three shows at Estádio Nilton Santos earlier this month in the midst of an extreme heat wave.
According to a spokesperson for the Civil Police Department of Rio de Janeiro, authorities have begun an inquiry into “the crime of endangering the life and health” of those in attendance, including 23-year-old Ana Clara Benevides Machado, who died on November 17.
“Event organizers will be called to testify, and other steps are underway to investigate the facts,” the statement continued.
Time4Fun CEO Serafim Abreu issued a public apology on Thursday, November 23, to the fans who “did not have the best possible experience” in Rio. “We know the enormous responsibility we have to organize an event of this scale, which is why we did not economize in our efforts or resources to follow the best global practices in our industry to guarantee the comfort and safety of all,” he noted.
Abreu acknowledged that “alternative steps” could have been taken to ensure the safety of those in the stadium despite the high temperatures.
Swift mourned Machado’s death via her Instagram Story on November 17, telling fans that she was “devastated” by the loss. “There’s very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young,” she wrote.
Machado was “promptly attended to by the team of firefighters and paramedics” in the stadium after feeling “unwell,” per a subsequent statement from Time4Fun. “Given the situation, the medical team chose to transfer her to Salgado Filho Hospital, where, after almost an hour of emergency care, she unfortunately died.”
Swift postponed her planned November 18 concert due to the severe weather, returning to the stage on November 19 and 20. During the acoustic section of her November 19 show, Swift gave an emotional performance of the Midnights ballad “Bigger Than the Whole Sky,” which many fans believe was chosen in Machado’s honor.
Weiny Machado, Ana Clara’s father, remembered his “happy and intelligent” daughter in a heartfelt statement to local newspaper Folha de São Paulo following her death. “She was about to graduate in Psychology next April, saving money. I have no words to express my pain,” he said. “She left home to fulfill a dream and came back dead.”
While her cause of death has not been confirmed, Weiny urged authorities to investigate. “I want it to be found out whether they were in fact prohibited from bringing water [into the stadium], whether there was negligence in providing assistance,” he continued. “I know that [Swift] was handing out water to her fans, and that is absurd for an event of this size. Nothing will bring my daughter back, but I hope that, if negligence is confirmed, someone will be punished, so that this doesn’t happen to anyone else.”
Swift has three more concerts lined up in São Paulo — her final shows of the year — from Friday, November 24, to Sunday, November 26. In the wake of Ana Clara’s death, Justice Minister Flávio Dino announced that fans will be allowed to bring water bottles into venues moving forward.
As she prepares to wrap up this leg of her Eras Tour, a source exclusively told Us Weekly that Swift feels “so grateful” that she has boyfriend Travis Kelce “to lean on” after Ana Clara’s death. “She was completely beside herself and it’s been so hard for her to talk about,” the insider told Us, noting that Swift’s team “reached out” to the fan’s family.
