“Hate crimes are on the rise. There’s a widespread dissemination of these messages, especially against women. They target them, as well as people of other nationalities, beliefs, and races,” said Luís Neves.
Without providing specific data, Luís Neves highlighted the increase in such crimes after the PJ today arrested a Portuguese-Brazilian citizen allegedly for inciting hatred by offering payment for the death of a Brazilian journalist residing in Portugal.
Regarding the case, the national director of PJ deemed it unacceptable for young people to be recruited and radicalized “to attack women just because they are women or to attack people of other origins.”
“We are talking about politically motivated crimes, and that is one of the major concerns, alongside the violence that stems from these messages, often based on manipulation and ‘fake news,'” he added.
Emphasizing the fight against hate crimes as one of UNCT’s objectives, Luís Neves also directed his message to far-right groups, stating that those who commit such crimes will face “fierce combat from the PJ.”
Today, UNCT arrested a man in Vila Real outside of a red-handed situation, who is “strongly suspected of disseminating on social media a post inciting violence against a group of foreign nationals.”
In a statement, the PJ explained that in these social media posts, the suspect “offered an apartment in central Lisbon [worth 300,000 euros] as a reward to anyone who carried out a massacre and exterminated certain foreign citizens and an additional bonus of 100,000 euros to anyone who attempted against the life of a Brazilian journalist working in Portugal.”
The suspect, according to the PJ, has a record of crimes related to discrimination and inciting hatred and violence. Evidence of his ideological radicalism was seized during the arrest, though specifics were not detailed.
In June, the PJ had dismantled an armed far-right militia, seizing hundreds of ammunition, military weapons, some made using 3D technology, and explosives.
