Miguel Taveira Arruda / Facebook
Deputy Miguel Arruda
The deputy at the center of the purse-stealing suspicions even campaigned for the PS and is described as unstable by childhood friends.
Miguel Arruda has been on everyone’s lips for starring in one of the most ridiculous cases of recent times. The Azorean deputy, who belonged to Chega, is suspected of stealing bags at airports and sell the stolen items on Vinted. But how did the deputy’s political adventure begin?
Born in Achada, in the Azores, Miguel Arruda, 39, has a history of controversial behavior since he was young. According to childhood friends of the deputy heard by , Arruda is “unstable” and the other children were afraid to play with him because “suddenly it turned around”.
Arruda graduated in Biological Sciences and completed two master’s degrees, having been expelled from the university tuna for misconduct. He also served in the army, where he became a sergeant and starred in eccentric episodes, such as appearing at Lisbon airport with an Azores flag tied around his waist, generating strangeness among his military colleagues.
He entered politics in 2021, when he ran for the Northeast Chamber for Chega and obtained just 31 votes. Before that, it was PS activist and participated in socialist campaigns.
In 2024, Arruda was elected deputy for the Azores in the Assembly of the Republic. His stay in Parliament has been marked by inflammatory speeches, defense of the Estado Novo and public interactions with neo-Nazis like Mário Machadowho he described as a “political prisoner”.
On social media, Arruda generated controversy when praise Salazarsuggesting that the dictator was “very much missed”, and criticizing transgender hormone therapy, comparing it to the castration of children. He also thanked Machado’s Grupo 1143 for canceling the singer’s performance funk MC Pipokinha, and called for the reconquest of Rua do Benformoso “from the Mouros”.
Still in Parliament, he had a brief stint as secretary of Chega-Açores, a position from which he was dismissed in less than a week.
In addition to political controversies, the deputy faces financial problems. Declare a liabilities exceeding R$50 thousand in personal credits, well above the 20 thousand euros per year he declared as a senior technician.
After the suitcase scandal, Miguel Arruda returned to the Azores having already announced that he will request a sick leave due to the psychological problems caused by the media coverage of the case.
