Tiago Cacais, Carris Metropolitana driver and the most seriously injured victim in the riots that shook Greater Lisbon after the death of Odair Moniz, showed his face for the first time more than a year after the attack that almost took his life. The episode occurred in October 2024, in Loures, when the driver was surprised by a group that set fire to the bus where he worked.
Tiago had been pursuing the same career for over a year and nothing had prepared him for what he found that morning. Upon arriving at the last stop in Cidade Nova, he heard a bang coming from the right side of the vehicle. Within seconds, he saw a group approaching with Molotov cocktails. He tried to close the doors, but one of the attackers entered the bus, preventing any escape. Unable to start due to the security system that blocks the vehicle when a door is open, he was trapped.
In the mirror, he saw one of the men pointing a gun at his head. He tried to appeal for calm, but incendiary bottles began to be thrown towards the driving position. The smell of gasoline intensified and, when one of the attackers lit a lighter outside, the fire invaded the interior of the bus, engulfing Tiago in flames.
Still burning, he tried to put out the fire with his hands. He took advantage of the attackers’ escape to retrieve his cell phone and car keys, before leaving through the front door and running down the street, in a scene captured on video and widely publicized at the time.
He was taken to Santa Maria Hospital and admitted to the Burns Unit, with second and third degree burns to his face, lungs, hands, feet and ankles. He remained in an induced coma for a week.
A month later, the Judiciary Police carried out a large-scale operation and detained several young people. Two men, aged 21 and 23, identified as the main suspects, were arrested, but were only detained for two months. The Public Ministry keeps the process under judicial secrecy. Sources close to the investigation confirm that the case is complex and difficult to prove, but there are already 12 defendants, the same number that coincides with Tiago’s memory of the group that attacked him. Everyone is free.
More than a year later, Tiago continues to recover. He remains on sick leave and prepares to return to professional activity, negotiating a change of role.
