Parts of a mutilated body washed up on the sands of Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, police say, just metres from where beach volleyball athletes will compete in the upcoming Olympics. Now the games come as the state of Rio de Janeiro awaits emergency funding of 2.9 billion reais to ensure financing for public services. The Olympics, which start August 5, were intended to show off an economic boom that has since fizzled in Latin America's biggest country. He has fretted publicly that the Olympics could be "a big failure" if financing does not come through but Brazil's federal government has said that it will. Police officials did not immediately return calls to their public affairs office for more details.

Source: New Zealand Herald June 29, 2016 21:56 UTC