Seven more police officers were reportedly detained this Wednesday, March 4, in connection with the case of torture carried out by agents inside the Rato police station, in Lisbon, according to CNN Portugal.
Two PSP agents are already in preventive detention and accused of crimes of torture, abuse of power, rape, attacks on physical integrity, among others. This Wednesday’s proceedings, chaired by seven MP magistrates, concern a second investigation into events that occurred at the Rato Police Station.
In a statement sent to the newsrooms, the PSP and the Public Ministry inform that “nine home searches and seven non-home searches are underway, the latter in Public Security Police Stations”, having been seven arrest warrants issued for seven PSP agents.
“The investigation investigates the possible commission of various crimes, namely, serious torture, rape, abuse of power, and qualified physical harm”, they add.
The PSP guarantees that it will continue to collaborate with the Judicial Authorities “to fully investigate the facts and to achieve justice”.
According to the accusation, the two agents who are in pre-trial detention attacked people they had detained with “punches and slaps”, but also with “butts to the head”, with some of these situations being filmed and photographed, as well as the respective victims, and shared in a WhatsApp group.
The MP says in the indictment that “the victims were, as a rule, particularly vulnerable people, namely individuals in a situation of drug addiction, homeless people, often foreigners who circulated in nightlife areas”.
The indictment’s order referred to the continuation of the investigation in light of “other facts, accused, and intervening co-authors not covered by the present indictment”. With a new investigation, says the MP’s document, the aim is to “establish the material truth, identify all those responsible and their respective degrees of co-participation”.
The General Inspectorate of Internal Administration also announced that it was investigating who watched the videos shared by the police, having opened an investigation process in collaboration with the PSP, which participated in the case.
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