A 76-year-old man was kidnapped as he left the café he owns in Coimbra during the early hours of Saturday. The suspects “wanted money” and assaulted him before abandoning him in a wooded area, according to his account.
The crime took place around 1 a.m. on Saturday when Augustino Dinis, managing partner of Café Scala in the Celas area, was closing the premises and was approached by three hooded individuals who forced him into a vehicle.
“What they wanted was money,” the owner revealed. “I had just collected my wife’s pension, money for rent, and some from the café’s takings… It was around a thousand euros. They were in my pocket, and I lost them immediately.”
During the car ride, Augustino Dinis recounted that one suspect drove while the other two assaulted him with punches.
“They wanted me to tell them if I had money at home. I said, ‘Look, there’s no money at home,'” shared the man, who has been running Café Scala for 33 years.
The hooded attackers also asked if Augustino Dinis had money in his new or old house, indicating they “probably knew where I lived.” “They probably know everything: I have the impression that they are local. They probably know more about my life than I do,” he commented.
The café owner was eventually abandoned in a wooded area in Aveleira, near Penacova, taking about two hours to walk home at a time when the authorities had already been alerted to his disappearance.
According to the man, the assailants returned to the café after stealing his key from his pocket but “only took money” and “didn’t touch anything else.”
The Public Security Police (PSP) recorded the incident, and the case has been handed over to the Judicial Police.
