The Rio de Janeiro Civil Police intends to obtain new evidence against those involved in the rapes of students at Colégio Federal Pedro II, in Rio de Janeiro. Investigators still hope to obtain cell phone data and computers belonging to the teenager reported to court for two rape crimes.
The young man is identified by the police as the mastermind of the attacks, which follow the same dynamic. The police also does not rule out requesting breach of telephone confidentiality of the four defendants involved in the gang rape to a 17-year-old girl, in Copacabana.
According to the delegate responsible for the investigations, Ângelo Lages, the request to search and seize the teenager’s equipment, which, like his arrest, was not accepted by the courts, has the potential to clarify allegations.
“The teenager was the mastermind behind all this. He had the trust of the victims, even for having had previous relationships with themSo, we understand that apprehension is necessary.”
Of the five boys who participated in the rape of the 17-year-old girl, in Copacabana, in January, the teenager is the only one who was not hospitalized by the Court, despite being requested by the Civil Police. He is free to answer for the crime. In a statement, the Public Ministry of Rio said that possible precautionary measures may still be requested during the investigation.
According to the delegate, the seizure of the teenager’s cell phone, followed by the breach of telematic confidentiality, can reveal more details about his and others’ participation in the crime that occurred in Copacabana and in another rape complaint registered against the young man this Monday (2).
Other rapes
Soon after the Copacabana case became public, following the circulation of images of the accused, two more Pedro II victims sought out the police to report other rapes with the participation of members of the same group that attacked the 17-year-old girl in January.
One of the complaints was made by a victim who was 14 years old at the time. In a statement, accompanied by her mother, she stated that she was raped in 2023, in an apartment in Maracanã, by the teenager and two other men.
According to the victim, the act was recorded and the images were used as a way to blackmail herwhich led investigators to suspect the contents of the cell phones. Of the four arrested, none handed over their personal equipment to the police.
The second victim, according to the delegate, reported that the entire action was filmed. “What caught our attention is that it was the same modus operandi as the action against this victim who suffered abuse at the World Cup”, he added.
The police officer explained again that, in both cases, the teenager prepared an ambush.
“She had a previous relationship with the teenager who lured her to the apartment and, when she got there, there were two more men who carried out sexual violence and physical attacks.”
On Saturday (28), the day of the attempted arrest of the accused, the police did not have authorization to seize cell phones or electronic devices. “We were interested in checking cell phones, because filming of this type of crime is very common,” said Lages.
The apprehension would also elucidate the dynamics of the action. “They agreed beforehand, they talked. This group didn’t appear in that apartment by chance”, he explained.
On Sunday, one day after the attempted arrest of those accused, the student union at Colégio Pedro II released a note calling for the expulsion of the students involved, the teenager and Vitor Hugo Simonin.
“It is not new that such students – and others – have some type of involvement in cases of harassment and abuse, including the leak of exposing videos of a student on campus”, says the entity’s statement on the social network.
The Civil Police also want to activate the school to learn about complaints and any previous investigations against students. The school did not comment.
Earlier, at the police station, Vitor Simonin’s defense told the press that his client denies the gang rape. Despite the severity of the victim’s injuries, certified by a coroner, lawyer Ângelo Máximo suggested consent.
When commenting on the case, the delegate once again alerted society. “Boys, especially, need to know that it’s no,” he said. “From the moment there is no longer consent, there is a crime”, he pointed out. “Including a heavy sentence, which can reach, if the victim is a teenager, 20 years in prison.”
For reports of domestic violence, Look for a police station or dial 180 from your phone.
*Brazil Agency
