A 26-year-old man is being tried this week on charges of qualified homicide and robbery, all relating to events last September when he went on a rampage.
He is accused of murdering Delmira Miranda, 84, in Faro and of assaulting two others at separate incidents at their in Olhão and Faro.
After beating Sra Miranda, the man stole valuables from her Faro home - he also kicked-in the door of a 95-year-old woman in Olhão, beat her and robbed her.
A third victim was assaulted in Faro, with similar modus operandi.
The prosecutor’s statement at the time reported that the man already had been convicted for a range of crimes, including robbery, kidnapping and robbery, and was on out on parole when the violent incidents took place last September.
Of the Faro robbery, the police say that the arrested man "broke down the front door of a house in the city centre” and assaulted the elderly woman who died at the scene while he, "seized property belonging to the victim."
The accused has been on remand since his arrest last October.
