Eight-time jiu-jitsu world champ allegedly shot dead by policeman

The global jiu-jitsu and MMA community is in mourning after news broke that eight-time world champion Leandro Lo was killed by two shots to the head during a party in Sao Paulo early on Sunday morning.

Lo, 33, was attending an event at Clube Sirio in Brazil's biggest city and, according to an incident report obtained by Brazilian MMA site Combate.com, got into an altercation with military policeman Henrique Otavio Oliveira Velozo.

According to the incident report filed at 1:57 AM on Sunday morning, witnesses said that Velozo went over to Lo's table and took a bottle following a brief discussion between the pair.

Lo then got up, took the bottle from Velozo's hand, and knocked him down which caused Lo's friends to separate both parties and ask them to leave their row to one side.

Yet after getting up, going around the table and then meeting Lo face on, Velozo drew his gun and fired two shots into Lo's head.

Lo was then taken to the Dr. Arthur Ribeiro de Saboya Municipal hospital, and was pronounced brain dead as confirmed by the lawyer of the Lo family, Iva Siqueira Junior. 

When contacted by Combate, the Sao Paulo Military Police did not know if Velozo had been arrested.

Over at G1, however, they said that the assailant had been identified but was now on the run. 

As the tragic news spread online, figures such as UFC referee Marc Goddard and ex-UFC welterweight title challenger Gilbert Burns mourned Lo's passing. 

"It's unbelievable that Leandro Lo passed away," lamented compatriot Burns. "Rest in peace," he added, alongside a string of crying emojis.

"Wow. Unbelievably tragic news about Leandro Lo. RIP to a jiu-jitsu legend. Shocking," said Goddard.

As an eight-time jiu-jistu world champion who also won five World Cups in the discipline, Lo was considered an all-time great who was also renowned for his guard technique.