Suspect claims PMs handed out PT t-shirts during stop in Piracicaba
A 21-year-old detained on drug trafficking charges claimed to police that military police officers ordered detainees to wear PT t-shirts. The case is under investigation by the PM's Internal Affairs division.
Statement indicates PMs distributed party uniforms before arrival at police station
A 21-year-old detained in flagrante for drug trafficking in Piracicaba (SP) on Wednesday (21) claimed to civil police that military police officers ordered him and other suspects to put on t-shirts alluding to President Lula's campaign during the stop. The account was obtained by g1.globo.com.
"When questioned regarding the white t-shirt of a political nature that he was wearing when he arrived at this police station, he claims that when everyone was stopped, at a certain moment, the officers found these t-shirts thrown in some shack in the alley and told them to put them on", reads an excerpt from the statement. The young man added that he suffered no physical or psychological violence.
On Thursday (22), the court ordered the release of the young man, with the imposition of precautionary measures. The second suspect, aged 24, remained in custody. The third person involved, a 17-year-old minor, was taken to a Fundação Casa facility.
The precautionary measures imposed on the released young man include bimonthly court appearances, a ban on frequenting bars and similar establishments, and a ban on leaving the municipality for more than eight days without judicial authorisation.
Witnesses contradict initial account
Reporters from g1.globo.com were at the location on Thursday morning and heard witnesses who claim that the three were not wearing PT t-shirts at the time of the stop.
"One was all in grey, one in a completely blue sweatshirt, cap and the other was in denim shorts and a white t-shirt", described one of the witnesses. According to her, the police action occurred in the morning and she woke up to the noise, with two patrol cars and around six officers at the scene.
The witness also reported assaults. "They put everyone in the hallway, sitting down and started hitting them. Then they grabbed one, handcuffed them, took them up here, then said a gun appeared there, I don't know if it actually did. When they got there, the girl has a sister, the sister ran screaming for the mother and he punched the girl."
PT campaign confirms origin of t-shirts
Two women hired by the Workers' Party campaign who live in the community where the stop occurred stated that police officers took their work uniforms from them to place them on the suspects.
State deputy Professora Bebel (PT), who publicly denounced the case, confirmed to g1.globo.com that the t-shirts are uniforms distributed exclusively to people hired to work on the campaign. Bebel also stated that she filed a report with the PM's Internal Affairs division.
The mother of the detained young man claimed that her son is a drug user, not a drug trafficker, and has no involvement with political activity. She also stated that police officers invaded her residence during the action. "They told me I shouldn't follow them. Then they punched my 14-year-old daughter in the chest."
Police defence contests accusations
Lawyer Joice Vanessa dos Santos, who is part of the legal team for one of the military police officers involved, stated that the accusations "do not adequately reflect the context of the incident or the performance of the officers". Santos stated that it is necessary to clarify the circumstances of the stop, the elements that motivated the intervention and the complete sequence of events, and guaranteed that the relevant clarifications will be presented to the competent authorities.
Political repercussions and investigations opened
The arrival of the detainees at the police station was filmed, and the images were shared on social media by elected senator Guilherme Derrite (PP). In a statement, Derrite claimed that the purpose of the publication was to draw attention to the recruitment of young people by drug trafficking and that he made no mention of the t-shirts. "Regarding the allegations presented later, Derrite defends that the facts be properly investigated by the competent bodies", his office added.
Derrite's post had accumulated more than 358,000 likes and around 25,000 comments as of the last update to the report.
Councillor Renan Paes (PL) shared on social media an audio that he claims is the original report via 190, in which the person calling mentions the PT t-shirts. Police did not confirm the authenticity of the recording.
The PT requested that the Attorney-General's Office have the Electoral Public Ministry investigate the case. The Ministry of Justice also demanded an investigation into the circumstances of the stop. The PM's Ombudsman called for the removal of the police officers involved during the investigation.
The Public Defence Office of the State of São Paulo reported that it participated in the custody hearings of the two adults and that the accounts presented were considered by the Judiciary in the decision on the maintenance of the arrests.
Source: Google News BR — São Paulo