Former Brazilian Congresswoman sentenced to 50 years in prison for killing husband
A court in Rio de Janeiro sentenced former Brazilian congressman and Evangelical pastor, Flordelis dos Santos to 50 years in jail.
- World News
- 2 min read
A three-year excruciating trial came to an end when a court in Rio de Janeiro sentenced former Brazilian congressman and Evangelical pastor Flordelis dos Santos to 50 years in jail.
The decision which came out on Sunday was over the 2019 murder of her husband. According to Arab News, the Prosecutors charged Santos with “orchestrating the homicide, and enlisting her (grown) children to take part in the crime and attempting to disguise it as an armed robbery.”
The couple were known for adopting many street children from the slums in Rio de Janeiro. It was reported that the couple had 55 children in total. The court found the grown children also complicit in the murder. While Santos's biological daughter, Simone dos Santos Rodrigues received 31 years in prison, her biological son, who was found guilty to be the gunman received 33 years in jail, for shooting his stepfather.
What went down in 2019?
On June 16 2019, Dos Santos’s husband Anderson do Carmo was shot down outside his Rio de Janeiro house. The former congresswoman claimed that armed robbers were behind the whole ordeal. A police investigation later found out that it was Dos Santos who colluded with some of her children, and was the mastermind behind the murder of her husband. It was found that the probable motivation to commit the crime was that Santos wanted to seize control of the couple's wealth.
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Dos Santos’ journey to the Parliament was very fascinating. She was born in a slum in Rio and was elected to Congress for the Social Democratic Party in 2018. She played a monumental role in the rise of Brazil’s Evangelical movement. A former evangelical pastor and singer, Santos came to power because she was known for adopting several children who were in need. Before joining the SDP in 2018, she belonged to the Movimento Democrático Brasileiro Party (MDB) between 2004 and 2018.
Her position as Federal deputy representing the state of Rio de Janeiro gave her immunity from the prosecution. However, the Brazilian lawmakers voted to remove her from office on Wednesday after which she was arrested immediately. According to the Arab News, Santos’ lawyer Anderson Rollemberg criticised the judgement and is all set to appeal on Monday.