Jury of police officers accused of Gritzbach's death begins on Monday in SP
The trial of the military police officers accused of participating in the murder of Vinicius Gritzbach, a PCC (First Command of the Capital) whistleblower, is scheduled to take place between the 22nd and 26th of June, at the Guarulhos Criminal Forum, in Greater São Paulo.
Gritzbach was murdered with ten shots in November 2024, when he was disembarking at Guarulhos International Airport. According to the Public Ministry of São Paulo, Denis Antonio Martins and Ruan Silva Rodrigues were the perpetrators of the shooting, while Fernando Genauro da Silva was the driver of the vehicle used in the crime.
With the conclusion of the investigations, the three accused were pronounced by the Court, a stage that forwards the case to the Jury Court. The decision indicates that there is sufficient evidence of authorship and materiality for the case to be analyzed by the jurors.
The motivation for the murder, according to the Civil Police, would be linked to revenge and financial disputes involving money laundering and cryptocurrencies.
A few months before his death, Gritzbach had entered into a plea agreement with the Public Prosecutor's Office, which provided information on the members of the faction, laundering schemes and the group's financial transactions.
Death of the whistleblower
Antônio Vinicius Lopes Gritzbach, aged 38, was killed by rifle shots at Guarulhos International Airport on November 8, 2024, after a plea bargain agreement with the Public Prosecutor's Office, which provided information on money laundering schemes, financial transactions and properties belonging to members of the faction.
He would also have named military and civilian police officers suspected of extorting criminals. The motivation for the crime, according to the police, would be linked to revenge and financial disputes involving money laundering and cryptocurrencies.
Investigations indicate that Emílio Carlos Gongorra, known as "Cigarreira", aged 44, ordered the crime with the support of Diego Amaral, known as "Didi", and a scout called "Kauê".
Appointed by connection with the Red Command, Cigarreira would have hired the police officers through the scout. Two of them acted as shooters and the third drove the getaway vehicle. The Civil Police stated that cross-checking data and images confirmed the presence of the perpetrators at the scene of the homicide.
Military police officers Denis Antonio Martins and Ruan Silva Rodrigues were identified as the shooters; and Fernando Genauro da Silva, was denounced as the driver of the car used in Gritzbach's execution.
In total, 18 PMs became defendants, 14 of which remain imprisoned at the Romão Gomes Military Prison.
Defense of PMs alleges errors in investigation
Shortly before the popular jury of military police officers accused of participating in the death of Vinicius Gritzbach, the defense of defendants Denis Antônio Martins and Ruan Silva Rodrigues filed a technical opinion contesting the expertise and reliability of the genetic evidence obtained during the process.
According to the document, obtained by CNN Brasil, there were procedural flaws in the expert report carried out in the VW Gol vehicle - used by the perpetrators on the day of the crime, from the perspective of the final report of the Technical Chamber of Biological Traces. The car, found abandoned near the airport, was preserved and examined at the scene.
The defendants' defense, through a note, stated that "the Technical Opinion proves, in a scientific and unequivocal way, the serious errors committed during the investigation phase, failures that resulted in the undue accusation of innocent people."
On the other hand, the São Paulo Public Prosecutor's Office told CNN Brasil that the "defense provided a technical opinion commissioned to question, one year and seven months after the crime, the impartial result of the expert report prepared by an official, autonomous and independent body." Read in full:
"The defense submitted a technical opinion commissioned to question, one year and seven months after the crime, the impartial result of the expert report prepared by an official, autonomous and independent body. In fact, none of the three defendants, arrested for more than a year, agreed to offer genetic material to carry out the aforementioned examination, and even so the result is incontrovertible: Ruan and Denis' DNA was found in the vehicle and abandoned objects."
*Under the supervision of Carolina Figueiredo
Source: CNN