Month: April 2017

On 25^th April the PSP Metropolitan Command of Lisbon, through the Transport Security Division, arrested at a 49 year old man at a metro station in Lisbon for carrying out two robberies on public transport. The person was caught in the act and was also a subject of an arrest warrant for similar robberies.

Wanted for having committed two robberies in stations in the metropolitan area of Lisboa, the man stole a total value of 232.50 euros in these cases. These crimes led to a request to the Public Prosecutor’s Office for the Arrest Warrants to be issued and now executed.

The detainee, with criminal records for the same type of crime, has appeared before the 1st Section of Criminal Court of Lisbon, for 1st judicial interrogation, and is awaiting trial under Preventive Detention.

PSP and GNR are expected to start certifying trainers and training dangerous dog keepers by the end of the second quarter of this year, the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MAI) announced today.

Although the ordinance came into effect in 2015,  the Public Security Police and the National Republican Guard, responsible for certification and training, have not started courses due to lack of funding.

However as the funding was approved in January this year the GNR explained that “the start of certification of trainers and the training of potentially dangerous dog keepers is expected soon, and this date will be announced by DGAV (Directorate General of Food and Veterinary) “.

The MAI states that a technical group was created that brought together elements of the PSP, GNR and DGAV to define the technical standards applicable to the certification of trainers and the training program of the holders of dangerous dogs.

According to the MAI, this technical group “has recently completed work”, which will now allow “operationalizing the certification of trainers and the training of the holders”.

“PSP and GNR will begin training and certification soon after DGAV’s approval of the training and certification program for technical standards, which is expected to happen by the end of the second quarter of this year,” says MAI.

Under the law, the GNR and PSP are the competent authorities to certify dangerous dog trainers. In addition to certifying who will be able to train these dogs, the two entities “should also provide the required training to the holders of dangerous and potentially dangerous dogs,” according to the ordinance published in 2015.

Data released by the GNR indicate that there were 65 attacks of by dangerous dogs so far this year, down from the same period last year, when 71 attacks were reported. In 2016 GNR registered a total of 235 attacks and 284 casualties.

Alarm weapons converted into real weapons (illegal in Portugal) and easily acquired on the Internet are one of the biggest concerns of the PSP, as more and more criminal groups are using them.

From 2014 until the end of the first quarter of this year, the PSP seized 6870 weapons of this type, according to data from the Department of Arms and Explosives (DAE) of the police provided to the Diario de Noticias (DN). They are mostly alarm guns that were handed over to the DAE by other security forces and district police commands because they were confiscated in criminal prevention operations or in criminal proceedings. The most frequent are the Reck, Tanfoglio, Rohner and Star models.

It is possible to order one, paying between one hundred and 200 euros, on a site registered in Turkey, where the business is legal, and transform it into Portugal, making it a true and low-cost firearm. Many will be in the hands of criminal groups and others with people who have been unable or unwilling to obtain a license to use and carry a defence weapon.

The purchase of illegal weapons on the internet on sites domiciled in third countries or foreign companies is very difficult to control. “As a serious security threat and in order to combat the illicit traffic in weapons through the internet, Europol has since 2013 carried out a number of operational actions, ranging from the training of police officers to cyber patrolling, especially in sales on the so-called darknet, or the black market of the internet, “said Pedro Moura, commander of the Department of Arms and Explosives of the PSP of Lisbon.

The temporary reintroduction of border control at the Portuguese borders during the visit of His Holiness Pope Francis between 00:00 hours on May 10, 2017 and 00:00 hours on May 14, 2017, at the air, sea and land borders.

All citizens who travel in or out of Portugal by Air: Airports / Aerodromes; Sea: Ports / Marinas or Land: Roads – Rail / Rivers must hold a valid travel document, namely, passport or citizen’s card, at the border control carried out by SEF, the Portuguese Immigration and Borders Service.

According to the Council of Ministers Resolution, the nine authorized border crossings / Land routes will be as follows::

a) Valença -Viana do Castelo, exit of BridgeTuy-Valença – connection IP1 -A3, in Valença, and railway station of Valença;

b) Vila Verde da Raia -Chaves, exit of A52, connection with A24, km 0, by the roundabout;

c) Quintanilha -Bragança, exit of International Bridge IP4/E 82, exit to Quintanilha or by the Joint Police and Customs Cooperation Centre at N 218 -1 Quintanilha;

d) Vilar Formoso -Guarda at the borderline, Border Square, by the Joint Police and Customs Cooperation Centre, N 16/E80, connection 620 Fuentes de Õnoro, Spain, including the old border, N 332, km 62,7, the railway station of Vilar Formoso and the access through Truck Parking, truck route, N16, Vilar Formoso;

e) Termas de Monfortinho -Castelo Branco, N 239 N 240 junction in Termas de Monfortinho;

f) Marvão -Portalegre, borderline, Marvão, N 521 connection to Valência de Alcântara at IC 13 Marvão and railway station of Beirã/Marvão, in Beirã;

g) Caia -Elvas, exit of A6 km 158, connection Caia -Elvas, by the Tourist Office, Elvas;

h) Vila Verde de Ficalho -Beja, by the borderline, connection A 495 Rosal de la Frontera with IP 8, Serpa;

i) Vila Real de Santo António – Border Square, km 131 da A22, International Bridge of Guadiana -Castro Marim, including river quay of Vila Real de Santo António.

On 19^th April the Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) detained a foreign citizen in pursuance of a European arrest warrant, issued in order for him to serve a prison sentence in Italy for the commission of extortion and criminal association crimes.

The person was intercepted in Lisbon, in connection with the warrant issued by the Italian authorities, which was pending on him, to serve a six-month and one-month prison term., resulting from his earlier conviction in Italy.

The 43-year-old detainee has appeared at the Public Prosecutor’s Office at the Lisbon Court of Appeal regarding his return to Italy to serve his sentence.

A hundred firefighters and at least three dozen vehicles from several corporations are fighting a fire at Trajouce, Sintra’s council.

The fire broke out on Monday night (24^th April) at the Tratolixo plant and, according to SIC-Notícias, is consuming part of the Tratolixo plant.

Tratolixo is an intermunicipal solid waste treatment company, created by the Association of Municipalities of Cascais, Mafra, Oeiras and Sintra.

Commander Pedro Araújo, of the Voluntary Firefighters, told the station there are houses nearby but none are at risk of being hit by the fire despite the wind that is felt.

The GNR Port Territorial Command recovered the components of cars in Trofa and Vila do Conde, in an operation that began on February 17 and ended on April 12, according to GNR.

“The operation, which is part of a process of investigation into theft and receipt of stolen vehicles, has already been carried out in four searches carried out in warehouses and in the commercial establishment of used car parts.”

This operation had the collaboration of two experts from the Judiciary Police in the identification of the components of more than 300 stolen automobiles. The investigation has detected components of more than 300 high-end cars, with the most notable being the BMW, Renault, Peugeot and Citrõen brands, stolen during the period between 2011 and 2017 but particularly during the period June 2015 and February 2017 .

Also according to the GNR, this action “required a detailed analysis of the provenance of the thousands of components found, such as engines, gearboxes, central units, seats, panoramic roofs, axles, seats and doors.”

The value of the vehicles that have been proven as stolen will be about five million euros, and the procedures for delivery of the goods now recovered to their owners has started.

The Judiciary Police announced on Friday the arrest of a 46-year-old man suspected of having committed a forest fire crime on Tuesday 18^th April 2017 in Barcelos.

In a statement, the PJ says that the man “has a criminal record for identical facts.”

According to police, the man whilst under the influence of alcohol started the fire “using a lighter, in a wood near his residence, also in the vicinity of other dwellings.”

The flames, according to the PJ, only did not reach greater proportions “due to the rapid intervention of the firemen”.

A 52-year-old man was detained in Coimbra by the Judiciary Police, caught in the act of downloading child pornography.

A source from the PJ’s Center Directorate told the Lusa news agency that the suspect, a health and safety technician at work, and without a criminal record, was detained on Wednesday 19th April  and subject to a term of Identity and Residence on the same day by the Department of Investigation and Criminal Action (DIAP) of Coimbra.

The same source added that the investigation was based on a complaint from an international non-governmental organization that prosecutes users of child pornography.

In the context of the investigation, the PJ detected in the computer systems used by the suspect, several files with pornographic content involving minors, that were obtained through downloads from the Internet.

In the course of the operation, a computer, a tablet and a hard disk were used for this purpose.

“The Judiciary Police presented for the first judicial interrogation a 43-year-old male defendant, a native of Seixal, Setúbal,” said a statement read by the president of the Judicial Court of the District of Funchal this Friday.

Paulo Barreto added that “after questioning that began at approximately 06.05 pm and ended at 19.45 hours, the defendant was indicted for the crime of qualified homicide” and was subject to the preventive custody measure.

On Saturday, 36-year-old Ilidia Macedo was stabbed to death in the house where she lived, in the Ajuda area, in the municipality of Funchal, allegedly by her former companion, and died at the scene.

The suspect is Valter Moreno, 43, a former athletic trainer at Sporting and currently a personal trainer and race teacher.

According to a police source, the suspect “tried to flee” and “attacked the Public Security Police (PSP)” who were summoned to the scene, which immobilized him firing a shot that hit him in the knee.

Police source told Jornel de Noticais that the alleged murderer was also found stabbed, having been admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of Dr. Nélio Mendonça Hospital in Funchal because of those injuries.

The crime occurred at 5 o’clock in the apartment of Idília Macedo, where he had recently moved, after the separation of Valter Moreno.