The first session of the trial, conducted by a single-judge court, is scheduled for September 22 at the Tribunal of Estarreja in the Aveiro district, as per information from the Citius justice portal.
The case originates from several posts made by Mónica Silva’s aunt and twin sister on the social network Facebook and statements made to various media outlets, where they accused Valente of being the father of the child Mónica Silva was carrying and of murdering her.
Fernando Valente filed a private lawsuit against the two, charging Mónica’s aunt with six counts of defamation and one count of defamation against the twin sister.
The businessman, who was tried and acquitted of Mónica Silva’s murder, is also seeking a total compensation of six thousand euros for moral damages suffered.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) decided to partially support the accusation, finding sufficient evidence for only two counts of aggravated defamation against Mónica’s aunt, for incidents occurring on November 6, 2024, not supporting the accusation against the pregnant woman’s sister.
On July 8, Fernando Valente was acquitted in the Aveiro Court of the charges of qualified homicide, abortion, desecration of a corpse, unauthorized access, and acquisition of counterfeit currency intended for circulation.
The jury court also dismissed compensation claims filed by the victim’s minor children and the widower.
The court further declared the termination of the home detention measure that the defendant was subjected to, allowing him to leave the Palace of Justice as a free man.
The MP and Fernando Valente’s family announced plans to appeal the decision to the Court of Appeal in Porto.
Fernando Valente was arrested by the Judiciary Police in November 2023, over a month after the disappearance of the 33-year-old woman, who was pregnant and seven months into her term.
The MP accused the defendant of killing the victim and the fetus she was carrying on the night of October 3, 2023, at his apartment in Torreira, to avoid being attributed paternity and to benefit from her assets.
The accusation further alleged that during the early hours of October 4 and the following days, the defendant allegedly disposed of the victim’s body, taking it to an undisclosed location, hiding it, and preventing it from being found to this day.
