The public servant convicted of amputating his own foot, in the interior of Bahia, took out four life and personal accident insurance policies to try to receive compensation. According to the process, the contracts signed between Vanderley dos Santos Gomes and the insurance company totaled R$1.5 million before suffering the injury.
According to the MP-BA (Public Ministry of Bahia), he had agreed with third parties to amputate his own right foot to simulate a crime and obtain compensation payments.
The complaint points out that the contracts were carried out between June and July 2019, with different insurance companies. Just over a month later, in the early hours of August 10 of that year, Vanderley suffered amputation of his foot on a side road close to BR-101, in the rural area of São Gonçalo dos Campos, in Brazil.
According to the MP, the man went to an insurance company days later and reported that he had been the victim of a robbery. In the version presented by him, armed criminals would have kidnapped him, stolen his belongings and amputated his foot before abandoning him at the scene.
The contracts signed
- June 17, 2019, in the amount of R$200 thousand;
- June 19, 2019, in the amount of R$400 thousand;
- June 29, 2019, in the amount of R$800 thousand;
- July 4, 2019, worth R$100 thousand.
The police investigation, however, showed that the injury had been caused deliberately to obtain a financial advantage through the insurance contracted.
According to the complaint, Vanderley had signed contracts with different insurance companies, with coverage ranging between R$100,000 and R$800,000 per policy.
Conviction
In October 2023, the Criminal Court of the District of São Gonçalo dos Campos convicted the defendant of fraud to receive compensation or insurance value.
The defense appealed the conviction and asked for acquittal, alleging a lack of sufficient evidence to hold the accused responsible.
In 2025, however, by a majority vote, the Second Criminal Chamber of the Court of Justice of Bahia denied the appeal and . The public servant must provide services to the community and pay a monetary benefit equivalent to five minimum wages.
Subsequently, the defense tried to take the case to the STJ (Superior Court of Justice) through a special appeal, but was unable to do so. The Court of Justice of Bahia did not admit the appeal because it considered that all the points questioned by the defense had already been examined throughout the process.
A CNN Brazil tries to contact Vanderley dos Santos Gomes’ defense. The space remains open.
