Hero ex-para accompanies his wife to private hospital in Brazil after he saved her and their three children from an armed gang as police close in on two suspects

  • British family ended up driving into a violent slum after sat nav directed them the wrong way
  • Mother, Eloise Dixon, was shot in the stomach after their vehicle was attacked
  • The 46-year-old's husband and three children were also in the car at the time
  • She was saved when he sped to the nearest police station on four flat tyres 
  • She was rushed to hospital where her condition has been described as 'stable'

A British mother shot in Brazil after her family's hire car strayed into a lawless slum has been transferred to a private hospital after emergency surgery.

Eloise Dixon was saved when her former paratrooper husband sped to the nearest police station – despite gunmen blasting all four tyres. 

The teaching assistant, 46, narrowly avoided being killed in front of her three daughters who were in the back seat, after the family were wrongly directed by their sat nav. 

This morning, pictures emerged of her husband, Maxwell, accompanying her to a private hospital in Rio de Janeiro.

It came as Brazilian cops last night revealed they have already identified two suspects from the Agua Santos favela in Angra dos Reis said to be involved in the incident. 

British mother Eloise Dixon (pictured) has been shot in front of her husband and three children after the family drove into a Brazilian slum by accident

British mother Eloise Dixon (pictured) has been shot in front of her husband and three children after the family drove into a Brazilian slum by accident

Shocking pictures show where a bullet thudded into a headrest in the car the family was in

Shocking pictures show where a bullet thudded into a headrest in the car the family was in

One bullet struck his wife in the stomach while another, apparently aimed at her head, slammed into the headrest.

Last night Mr Dixon's mother revealed her son – now a fireman – had bravely wrestled the Renault back to the highway and reached a police checkpoint from which his wife was taken to hospital for life-saving surgery.

Hazel Dixon, 76, said: 'Maxwell is a very good driver and an ex-paratrooper.

'He's very, very good in an emergency. The gunman shot out the tyres, but apparently he drove the car as fast as he could with four flat tyres to a safe area and to the nearest police station…it could have been so much worse.'

Hospital director, Sebastiao Faria, said the 46-year-old married mother-of-three, was in a stable condition after the four hour operation and was expected to make a full recovery

Hospital director, Sebastiao Faria, said the 46-year-old married mother-of-three, was in a stable condition after the four hour operation and was expected to make a full recovery

Their sat nav directed them into a shanty town, where they came under attack from gunmen

Their sat nav directed them into a shanty town, where they came under attack from gunmen

Foreign Office travel advice warns tourists that Brazil's favelas, or shanty towns, are 'unpredictably dangerous areas' and are risky places to visit even with organised tours, adding: 'Violence can occur at any time and overspill to areas close to the favelas'

Foreign Office travel advice warns tourists that Brazil's favelas, or shanty towns, are 'unpredictably dangerous areas' and are risky places to visit even with organised tours, adding: 'Violence can occur at any time and overspill to areas close to the favelas'

She added: 'Obviously I sing his praises but I think he would have been really gutsy. He's useful when it comes to the crunch because he's as calm as can be.'

Foreign Office travel advice warns tourists that Brazil's favelas, or shanty towns, are 'unpredictably dangerous areas' and are risky places to visit even with organised tours, adding: 'Violence can occur at any time and overspill to areas close to the favelas.'

The well-travelled family, who are understood to live in Hayes near Bromley, south-east London, have previously travelled to Newfoundland and Cape Verde.

They flew to Rio de Janeiro last Monday with daughters Isabella, 13, Holly, eight, and Alice, seven, and were exploring the coast.

They were driving a Renault Fluence hire car on the main road from Rio to Santos, near the holiday resort of Angra dos Reis, on Sunday when their sat nav directed them into a shanty town, and they were challenged by an armed gang.

They fired a volley of bullets, one of which hit Mrs Dixon in the stomach. Images shown on Brazilian TV showed how another bullet struck the headrest where the mother of three had been sitting, missing her head by inches.

Images shown on Brazilian TV showed how another bullet struck the headrest where the mother of three had been sitting, missing her head by inches

Images shown on Brazilian TV showed how another bullet struck the headrest where the mother of three had been sitting, missing her head by inches

That suggest the British mother-of-three had ducked to avoid being shot again, or was bent over in agony from the first shot that hit her in the stomach when the criminals fired at her a second time

That suggest the British mother-of-three had ducked to avoid being shot again, or was bent over in agony from the first shot that hit her in the stomach when the criminals fired at her a second time

The family took a wrong turn after being wrongly directed into a shanty town by their sat nav, where they came under attack from gunmen

The family took a wrong turn after being wrongly directed into a shanty town by their sat nav, where they came under attack from gunmen

That suggest the British mother-of-three had ducked to avoid being shot again, or was bent over in agony from the first shot that hit her in the stomach when the criminals fired at her a second time. 

The two men who attacked the family were on the run last night.

Local police chief Bruno Gilaberte said: 'We are following a line of investigation and have heard from two witnesses already and they have helped to identify two suspected assailants.

A British mother has been shot in front of her husband and three children after the family drove into a Brazilian slum by accident. Police are pictured pointing out a bullet hole in the car door

A British mother has been shot in front of her husband and three children after the family drove into a Brazilian slum by accident. Police are pictured pointing out a bullet hole in the car door

As well as hitting the side of the car and bursting the passenger said front wheel, a bullet also hit the front seat head rest where Mrs Dixon was sitting 

As well as hitting the side of the car and bursting the passenger said front wheel, a bullet also hit the front seat head rest where Mrs Dixon was sitting 

'We believe a third person was involved and we are working with the possibility that more may have participated.

'We are looking at CCTV images and encouraging more witnesses to come forward to trace the circumstances of the crime.

'What we can confirm is that the suspects have links to local drug trafficking.'

He said detectives had not yet been able to question Mrs Dixon or her husband about the incident following medical advice.

Hospital director, Sebastiao Faria, said the 46-year-old married mother was 'making very good progress'

Hospital director, Sebastiao Faria, said the 46-year-old married mother was 'making very good progress'

'We believe it will be possible to hear from them by today (Tuesday),' Gilaberte added.

Agua Santa - the slum the family ended up in - is home to drugs traffickers belonging to a Rio de Janeiro-based criminal organisation called Terceiro Comando Puro.  

They split from the Terceiro Comando in 2002 following a bloody prison massacre.

Terceiro Comando Puro, whose members are thought to be behind the gun attack, are regarded as the second most important criminal organisation in Rio de Janeiro.  

The bullet missed Mrs Dixon's vital organs and after a two-hour operation to remove it from her bowel she was last night recovering at Japuiba Hospital in Angra dos Reis. 

Rodrigo Muchelli, medical director, said: 'The bullet passed straight through her abdomen, and missed the vital organs and arteries. She was very lucky.'

Hospital staff said another bullet had 'grazed' Mrs Dixon's upper body. She is expected to be transferred to a private hospital in Rio once she is well enough. 

Sebastiao Faria, another official at the hospital, said she was operated on Sunday to check for any damage and is now recovering well. 

Dixon is awake and talking and will be ready to leave the hospital in 48 to 72 hours, Faria added.  

The family were targeted after being wrongly directed into a favela. The two men who attacked the their Renault Fluence car are still on the run (file picture)

The family were targeted after being wrongly directed into a favela. The two men who attacked the their Renault Fluence car are still on the run (file picture)

Eloise Dixon was hit twice in the stomach when a gang fired at their vehicle in a deprived part of the holiday resort of Angra dos Reis (file picture)

Eloise Dixon was hit twice in the stomach when a gang fired at their vehicle in a deprived part of the holiday resort of Angra dos Reis (file picture)

Mr Dixon served five years in the Territorial Army before he became a fireman in Bromley, south-east London, in 1998. 

His mother, who lives in Woldingham, Surrey, added yesterday: 'My son phoned me up at ten past nine last night and said Eloise has been shot. I had an hour before he phoned back and Eloise was just going in to theatre.'

The grandmother said she was overwhelmed with relief after hearing that her daughter-in-law was going to pull though.

She added: 'It could have been absolutely horrendous…but she's going to be OK. The bullet must have come through the car door and lost some of its velocity.'

Edward Paine, of South America tour specialists Last Frontiers, told the Daily Telegraph he would 'never recommend self-drives around any of Brazil's large cities, especially for those who don't speak or read Portuguese'. 

  • A previous version of this article was based on information provided by the Police and official statements at the time. We have since been notified that Mrs Dixon and her family were not looking for water and did not ask for directions, but that the car's navigation system directed them the wrong way.