A PSP officer was part of a group of 15 defendants who went on trial in October 2022 at the Vila Real Court for various crimes, including arms trafficking and mediation, drug trafficking, and passive corruption.
The verdict was delivered on January 31, 2024, with the panel of judges convicting the police officer to one year and six months in prison, with a suspended sentence, for the crime of abuse of power, after amending the initial charge of arms trafficking.
The public prosecutor appealed the decision of the first instance, and in a ruling dated May 27, now published online by the Porto District Attorney General’s Office, the Guimarães Court of Appeal decided to increase the sentence for the PSP officer to two years in prison, also suspended for the same period.
At the time of his arrest by the Judiciary Police, the defendant was serving in the arms and explosives division of the PSP in Chaves.
The Vila Real judges decided to modify the charges against the officer, switching to abuse of power instead of the initial charges by the prosecutor for arms trafficking and mediation and passive corruption.
The court found that the officer exploited his position to achieve undue gains for himself or his associates concerning the arms and ammunition he had access to, acquiring such weapons for himself or others, either for free or at a reduced price compared to their real value.
Thus, when individuals with possession of weapons and ammunition showed up at the service, instead of registering these items for the State, he obtained these weapons for himself or others.
During the “Ibéria” operation in October 2020, the Judiciary Police announced the arrest of 52 individuals and the seizure of hundreds of weapons, with only 15 defendants standing trial.
Out of those 15 defendants, only two were sentenced to actual prison terms.
For the defendant considered the group’s leader, the appeal court increased the initial sentence of five years and two months to seven years for drug trafficking and arms trafficking and mediation.
The court also decided to increase the penalties for another two defendants, one to six years and two months for drug trafficking (initially sentenced to four years and six months) and the other to four years and six months with a suspended sentence for drug trafficking (previously sentenced to one year and five months with a suspended sentence).
The defendants’ appeals were rejected.
Among the other defendants, two women were acquitted, and the rest were convicted with suspended sentences for various crimes such as arms trafficking and mediation or lesser drug trafficking.
