A group of four men and one woman has been arrested for assaulting and holding a 20-year-old man hostage in the trunk of a vehicle, allegedly due to a “settling of accounts,” in the municipality of Torres Vedras.
“The suspects gained access to the interior of a residence where the victim, a 20-year-old man, was located. He was subdued, dragged, and subjected to extreme violence, later being held captive in the trunk of a vehicle,” detailed the Polícia Judiciária (PJ) in a statement to the press on Friday.
The attackers stole money and “various goods” from the victim, using knives and firearms.
The crimes are believed to be due to “a settling of accounts related to money laundering.”
“The investigation conducted by the PJ enabled the collection of particularly relevant evidence, which led to the identification, location, and subsequent arrest of all group members, some of whom have an extensive criminal background,” emphasized the security force in the same note.
The detainees were presented for their first judicial interrogation, resulting in the four men being placed under pretrial detention. The woman, however, was subject to “a coercive measure not involving deprivation of liberty.”
Violent and serious crime increased by 2.6% last year compared to 2023, with 14,385 crimes recorded, while general crime decreased by 4.6% with 354,878 reports, according to the Annual Internal Security Report (RASI).
Lusa | 16:43 – 31/03/2025
It should be highlighted that, according to the Annual Internal Security Report (RASI), violent and serious crime increased by 2.6% last year compared to 2023, with 14,385 crimes recorded. However, general crime decreased by 4.6%, with 354,878 reports.
The crimes that increased the most were bag-snatching (up 8.7%), vehicle theft (up 106.3%), robbery in commercial or industrial buildings (up 21.7%), rape (up 9.9%), and robbery at banks or other credit institutions (up 128.6%).
Meanwhile, the crimes that decreased the most compared to 2023 were resistance and coercion against an official (-16.2%), serious voluntary bodily harm (-6.1%), street robbery except bag-snatching (-0.3%), other robberies (-8.3%), and robbery at fuel stations (-12.3%).
