Lisbon Police awaits sentence in case of young man's death in Amadora
Sintra court will today announce its decision in the case of the officer who fired at Odair Moniz, during an operation in Cova da Moura last autumn.
Lisbon Police awaits sentence in case of young man's death in Amadora
This afternoon, Sintra court will read the final decision in the case against a PSP officer suspected of killing a 33-year-old young man during an intervention in the Cova da Moura neighbourhood in Amadora. The incident occurred last autumn.
The trial concludes this Monday, with the session scheduled for 15:30. The representative of the Public Prosecutor's Office requested that the defendant be punished, arguing that the circumstances do not justify the claim of self-defence.
According to the magistrate, there is insufficient evidence that the victim was armed with a cold weapon or that he used it against the officer. The sentence provided for this type of crime ranges between eight and 16 years' imprisonment. Furthermore, the prosecution requested that the officer be barred from continuing to exercise functions in the security force.
The deceased young man, originally from Cape Verde, was hit by two shots. The case sparked debate on the conduct of law enforcement forces in contexts of greater social tension.
Criminal Police investigators stated that the knife found at the scene bore no biological or fingerprint marks from the victim, which makes it unlikely that he handled it. However, some of the defendant's colleagues said they saw the object next to the body, whilst others said the opposite.
Lawyer Ricardo Serrano Vieira, who represents the officer, argues that the existence of the knife was intentionally excluded from the prosecution. The lawyer indicated there were reflections in the video surveillance recordings which, according to his interpretation, correspond to the object in question, and questioned the technical conclusions of the Criminal Police.
Source: RTP
Source: RTP