Santa Maria Hospital, in Lisbon
The employees are suspected of receiving payments from funeral homes to speed up the release of certain bodies and speed up funerals. There is evidence that the scheme has been running since at least 2002.
The Judiciary Police carried out searches this Thursday at the mortuary of Santa Maria Hospital, in Lisbon, and at the homes of several employees suspected of being part of an alleged bribery scheme involving funeral agencies.
According to , the scheme consisted of paying illicit sums of between 20 and 30 euros for certain bodies to be prepared and released before others. This way, the funeral homes that paid would have priority in collecting the bodies.
The money collected was placed in a common amount, later divided among around a dozen morgue employees allegedly involved in the system. According to a police source cited in the investigation, in a “good month” some members of the group could receive more than 500 euros additional to the salary.
Suspicions indicate that the scheme may be active for more than two decades. There are allegations dating back to 2002, which would have allowed some of the oldest employees to accumulate significant earnings over the years.
The current investigation originated from a complaint filed in October 2023 by Ana Paula Martinsthen president of the Board of Directors of Centro Hospitalar Universitário Lisboa Norte and current Minister of Health. Following this complaint, the Public Ministry opened an investigation and instructed the Judiciary Police to carry out investigations through the National Anti-Corruption Unit.
During the operation, called “Rigor of Death“, several elements considered relevant to the investigation were seized, including coded records that will now be analyzed by investigators. Despite the searches carried out, there are currently no accused persons formally constituted in the case, according to an official PJ source.
The president of ULS Santa Maria said he was collaborate with authorities and await the conclusions of the ongoing Judicial Police investigation, which is also internally checking whether there are “less regular” situations.
Similar cases have emerged in different parts of the country over the past few years. Investigations in 2024, in Bragança, and in 2023, in Aveiro, revealed similar schemes involving healthcare professionals, hospital morgue employees and representatives of funeral homes.
During a visit to the Santa Maria Hospital carried out a few hours after the searches, the Minister of Health refused to comment on the process.
