A cop who gunned down a suspect at point-blank range behind a van is being backed by his bosses in Brazil.

Armed police had been called to the bar in Contagem, Minas Gerais state, on 16th July, following reports of gunfire.

But shocking footage shows how the prime suspect was led behind a white microbus and shot three times at point-blank range.

In one grim scene, he is seen lying on the pavement while witnesses scream in horror.

The suspect – who died later in hospital – had seconds earlier been standing peacefully at the other end of the van with his hands behind his head.

Previously he had been seen lifting up his T-shirt to show he was unarmed.

The victim was named by family members as Marcos Vinicius Vieira Couto, 29, who police say was a violent career criminal.

The Military Police said in a press conference on Sunday that Marcos was shot three times after he reacted.

However, witnesses at the scene told local media he had not made any sudden move that could have prompted the officer to shoot him.

Police spokeswoman Major Layla Brunnela said the footage showed Marcos had a bulge in his back pocket, which she claimed was a firearm.

The police said he had previously been booked seven times for carrying a weapon, nine times for trafficking and once for selling weapons.

The officer who killed him remains at the disposal of the Military Court of Justice of Minas Gerais.

The Human Rights Commission of the Brazilian Bar Association in Minas Gerais described the shooting as the “third execution in the area in less than two weeks”.

The Commission said they happened because “the alleged trafficker and others did not pay the alleged corruption amounts charged and owed to the police”.

But Major Brunnela insisted: “There were no excesses or overkill in the police stop.”