Two PSP (Public Security Police) officers from Olhão accused of abducting and killing a Moroccan man in March 2024 went on trial at Faro Court today, 8th September, denying responsibility for the victim’s death.
Jorge Sousa and Pedro Barbosa are accused by the Public Prosecutor’s Office of aggravated kidnapping and aggravated murder in connection with the death of Aissa Ait Aissa, who spent 20 days in the intensive care unit at Faro Hospital after suffering a “brain contusion, with subarachnoid haemorrhage and refractory, fatal cerebral oedema”.
At the opening hearing, the officers recalled being called twice on the same day to deal with disturbances allegedly caused by Ait Aissa and Hassan Ait Rahou at supermarkets in the city of Olhão.
Following the second incident, and after an employee at the establishment declined to file a complaint, the two officers decided, “with the agreement of both men”, to take them home. The pair were handcuffed with their hands behind their backs in the police vehicle, a measure the defendants said was intended for their own protection and was standard procedure when transporting people in PSP vehicles.
The officers said the Moroccan immigrants appeared to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs, but described them as “peaceful” and “calm”. They said both men were “conscious” when they were dropped off at a location known as “caminho da sucata” (scrap road), in Pechão.
Barbosa said he had sent Hassan Ait Rahou’s identification details to his colleague so that he could prepare the incident report. He also denied deleting a WhatsApp message relating to the incident, saying the message concerned another matter.
Sousa, meanwhile, said he had begun preparing the paperwork through the PSP’s internal system, but was unable to explain why he had not completed it.
During the morning session, expert witness Aníbal Coutinho, a doctor at the Algarve Local Health Unit, also gave evidence. He said the possibility that the victim had been run over was “out of the question” and concluded that the cause of death was a deliberate assault, which caused “a depression” in the left side of the skull.
In its indictment, the Public Prosecutor’s Office said the officers “acted freely and consciously, fully aware that their conduct was prohibited under criminal law”, and that they had “seriously abused” their authority.
Source: LUSA
Photo credit: Eduardo Costa / LUSA
