By IANS
Rio de Janeiro : Brazilian soccer player Carlos Adriano de Jesus Soares and two other people were killed in a car crash here, the Spanish news agency EFE said.
Alemao, as the Palmeiras forward was known, was driving a sports utility vehicle packed with nine people at a high speed Sunday, according to the police, who said he lost control on an avenue on the outskirts of the city, rolled over and hit a wall.
The 23-year-old player and two children in the vehicle died in the crash, while six passengers sustained a variety of injuries.
Alemao had been injured in February during the Sao Paulo league championship and was slated to resume playing at the end of the year, doctors said.
The forward started his career with Artesul, a club in Rio's Nova Iguazu neighbourhood, then moved on to first division team Coritiba.
In 2005, Alemao played in Japan, helping Kyoto Sanga win the first division title. He was traded in 2006 to the Yokohama Marinos, who won the Japanese championship in 2006.
At the beginning of this year, he signed with Palmeiras but hardly played after suffering a severe knee injury in the first tournament he participated in with his new team.