After five years of procedural procedures and appeals from the defendants’ defense, The trial of the Henry Borel case begins this Monday (23), at 9 am, in the 2nd Jury Court. The defendants, Monique Medeiros (mother) and Jairo Souza Santos Júnior, (Dr. Jairinho), will face the popular jury, accused of the death of Henry Borel.
Henry, then 4 years old, died in the early hours of March 8, 2021in the apartment where he lived with his mother, Monique Medeiros and his stepfather, Dr. Jaririnho, in Barra da Tijuca, southwest of Rio.
The boy was even taken to a private hospital in Barra da Tijuca, where the couple claimed that the child had suffered a domestic accident.
However, the autopsy report from the Medical-Legal Institute (IML) indicated that Henry suffered 23 injuries by violent action, including liver laceration and internal bleeding.
Civil Police investigations concluded that Henry was a victim of torture routines carried out by his stepfather and that his mother was aware of the attacks.
Prison
The defendants were arrested in April 2021 and charged by the Public Ministry of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ). Jairinho is responsible for qualified homicide and Monique for homicide due to failure to provide assistance.
The complaint points out that on the day of the crime, Jairo Santos Juniorwith free will and consciously, through forceful action taken against the victim, caused him bodily injuries which were the sole cause of his deathwith the mother, Monique Medeiros, legal guarantor of the victim, omitting her responsibility, effectively contributing to the crime of murder of her son.
According to the MPRJ, on three other occasions, in February 2021, Jairinho subjected Henry Borel to physical and mental suffering using violence.
Who is Jairinho
Jairo Souza Santos Júnior is from a traditional family from Bangu, in the west of the capital of Rio de Janeiro. His father was a colonel in the Military Police and was a state deputy for four consecutive terms.
With the repercussion of the case, Dr. Jairinho, as he was known, had his mandate revoked by the plenary of the Rio City Council, on June 30, 2021. Voting was in person and via videoconference. Of the 50 councilors, 49 voted to revoke the parliamentarian’s mandate. The Rio Chamber is made up of 51 councilors.
Feature
Dr. Jairinho’s defense appealed the impeachment decision, trying to regain his parliamentary mandate. On June 6, 2024, in a unanimous decision, the 1st Chamber of Public Law of the Rio Court of Justice denied the defense’s appeal.
In the decision, the case’s rapporteur, judge Jaqueline Lima Montenegro, wrote that “the sentence does not deserve reform. The appellant seeks the annulment of the legislative decree that declared the loss of his mandate as councilor, due to a breach of parliamentary decorum in the context of the Henry Borel case.”
The judge explained, in the decision, the reason for denying the request made by Jairinho’s defense.
“The petitioner is not right. Firstly, it must be said that the criminal, civil and administrative bodies are independent, so that, as very well remembered by the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the same fact is subject to different assessments, which can, obviously, result in different responsibilities, as can be gleaned from the specific legislation of each sphere of investigation”, he wrote.
Henry’s father, Leniel Borel, who serves as assistant prosecutor, spoke about the pain of losing his son and waiting for justice.
“I have spent more time fighting for justice for my son than the time I had with him in life,” said Leniel.
“Henry only lived four years. I wake up and sleep with the same request: that the truth about what they did to my son be told in front of the whole of society”, he lamented.
For the victim’s father, the jury’s appointment brings a mix of hope and suffering.
“Seeing the scheduled trial is like reopening a wound that never healed. It hurts a lot, but it also gives me hope that, finally, Henry will be heard by justice”, he said.
“It’s not just any trial: it’s the trial of a brutal crime against a 4-year-old child who trusted the adults who were supposed to protect her,” he said.
Leniel also spoke about the delay in the trial. “It’s been five years that I’ve been fighting for justice every day. A lot of expectations for this jury. I hope that the jurors will do justice for my son in proportion to the brutality they did to Henry.”
“In fact, everything that is being done is in an attempt to free Monique and Jairo. That’s why I want to call for this fight for Justice so that those two monsters don’t get out. The day they were arrested, they already had their bags packed to flee the country. So we have to stay alert”, he added.
Henry’s father also profiled the defendant. “In fact, Jairo is a sadist. He is a psychopath, but he is conscious, with a higher education, a doctor. He didn’t act without conscience, no. I’m talking about a councilor with five terms, who took pleasure in attacking children.”
“Today, I dare to say that Jairo only moved in with Monique because of Henry. That to me is terrible. How can we explain an adult who can attack a child, an angel, a defenseless child”, highlighted Leniel Borel.
He also criticized Henry’s mother, Monique Medeiros. “A mother who knew about the attacks and did nothing. Today I say: Monique is much worse than Jairo. There were several scenarios, Jairo acting out, hitting the child, attacking. Henry was desperate. When he saw Jairo, he vomited”, he stated.
“A mother who allowed her son to be raped to satisfy Jairo’s pleasures,” concluded Henry’s father.
Manifestation
Starting at 8 am this Monday, in front of the Central Forum, in Praça 15, a demonstration by various children and adolescents’ rights entities is scheduled.
*Brazil Agency
