The woman claims that her son was the target of extortion by other Brazilians living in the Netherlands.
The mother of Begoleã Fernandes, a 26-year-old murder suspect who was detained at Lisbon airport on Monday with a package of “suspicious” meat in her suitcase, defended her son’s actions as “legitimate defense” and claimed that he was the target of “humiliation and blackmail” by other Brazilians who, like Begoleã, reside in the Netherlands.
“We have been resolving formal procedures for many days, yesterday I decided to speak, not for legal purposes, but in defense of what the boy is, what my son is, my son that I know, but now the lawyer has already talked to him, is in the course of the whole process in his defense, because it was self-defense,” said Carla Fernandes Pimentel, in statements to the Brazilian website G1.
Recall that the Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) told Notícias ao Minuto that, allegedly, the meat found in the suspect’s suitcase, would be human, and is being analyzed. The Brazilian was arrested for falsifying documents, since he presented an Italian identity card, and the SEF later found out that he was suspected of having killed a young man in the Netherlands and therefore wanted to leave the Schengen area with a false identity.
The victim is Alan Lopes, 21, who was found dead on February 26 in the house where he lived with his mother and sister in Vegasstraat, Amsterdam. However, according to the victim’s sister, the police have already ruled out the possibility that the meat found in Begoleã’s suitcase belonged to Alan Lopes.
The family of Alan, who was born in Brazil and has been living in Amsterdam for seven years, said that Begoleã often visited their home and stayed overnight when he had nowhere to sleep. He also claims that Alan, who was a butcher, lent the suspect money in times of financial difficulty.
Earlier, in a post on social media published by the local Bhaz website, Begoleã’s mother claimed that Begoleã suffered “humiliations and blackmail” from Brazilians who also lived in the Netherlands.
“I wanted my son to be with me, and for some time people had been praying at my request, because I could no longer bear to see the humiliation and blackmail he was suffering. All this not by the Dutch, but by corrupt Brazilians. Unfortunately, everything happened this way,” wrote the woman, who also lamented Alan’s death, describing her son as “hardworking, warrior, honest, kind, loyal.
According to G1, the suspect’s lawyer said that the suspect fled Holland to avoid being killed and that he acted in self-defense, which he said could be proven by an injury to Begoleã’s right hand that would have occurred after the man grabbed the knife to defend himself.
Earlier this week, when announcing the arrest, the SEF revealed that the alleged killer had been admitted to the Santa Maria Hospital in Lisbon for clinical evaluation due to an injury to his right hand.
It is noteworthy that the SEF also revealed that at the time of the arrest, the suspect was still in possession of a bandage and clothes with traces of blood, in addition to the flesh, which is being analyzed.
This Thursday, a source connected to the case told Lusa news agency that Begoleã Fernandes was heard by the Lisbon Court of Appeals and was remanded in custody pending extradition to the Netherlands. He is currently being held in the Lisbon prison.
