Brazil prosecutors say they are seeking arrest of senior Vale exec

FILE PHOTO: A helmet with a logo of Vale SA is seen in a collapsed tailings dam owned by the company, in Brumadinho, Brazil February 13, 2019. REUTERS/Washington Alves/File photo

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazilian prosecutors are seeking the arrest of a Vale SA senior executive, authorities said on Friday, following the collapse of a dam holding mining byproducts that is believed to have killed over 300 people.

This is the first time that prosecutors are seeking to detain a senior-level executive, although several mid-level employees have been arrested in the wake of the disaster in the town of Brumadinho. Eight employees are still being held.