An expert points out answers that are outside the standard of Ricardo Salgado in expert tests

Experts responsible for a report confirming Ricardo Salgado had Alzheimer’s disease said in court Tuesday that the former banker exhibited atypical behavior during expert tests, appearing “casual” in his answers – a finding the defense has sought to discredit.

Heard in the context of the EDP case, the trial of which is ongoing at the Justice Campus in Lisbon, psychiatrist from the National Institute of Legal Medicine and professor at the University of Coimbra, Joaquim Soares Cerejeira, said that Ricardo Salgado answered several times: “I don’t know” or “I don’t remember” to several questions asked as part of expert tests he was subjected to, which is “an atypical reaction in patients with Alzheimer’s disease.”

“Patients with Alzheimer’s disease struggle to respond and often respond incorrectly. This is the pattern,” the expert said, insisting that “little effort” to answer questions is not a characteristic sign of the disease, especially in matters related to the family, such as those who are raised towards children.

The results of this test were used by experts to suggest a possible attempt to aggravate symptoms on the part of Ricardo Salgado, which the former banker’s lawyer Francisco Proenza de Carvalho tried to refute by questioning the expert about other factors that could explain such behavior. however, the psychiatrist agreed that cognitive fluctuations or Salgado’s higher level of fatigue that day could have influenced these responses.

In addition to emphasizing that Salgado’s behavior could be explained by “several hypotheses,” Proenza de Carvalho also argued that the report’s findings discounted another test conducted, the results of which challenged the idea of ​​little effort on the part of the patient. inspected.

“The interesting thing is that I cannot understand how it is that in the report’s findings there was only one test mentioned and no mention was made of another test that shows exactly the opposite. That is what I cannot understand,” the lawyer told reporters on exit from today’s session.

Francisco Proenza de Carvalho also questioned part of the examination being carried out by a psychologist rather than someone specializing in neuropsychology, as required by the disease, he argued, noting that “it is a very specific specialty.”

Both Joaquim Soares Cerejeira and neurologist Maria Isabel Santana defended the report’s findings, which indicate that Ricardo Salgado is capable of testifying in court, although they cannot guarantee the accuracy of his answers.

The defense asked “what consistency can be extracted” from the responses of a man with Alzheimer’s disease who cannot correctly answer basic questions such as his age, the day, month and year he is in or who the First Minister is, with Maria Isabel Santana emphasizes that there is a difference between more recent and older memories, and it may be in the court’s best interest to question and hear answers about older facts.

Joaquim Soares Cerejeira, when asked about Salgado’s ability to answer complex questions, such as those related to the prosecution, said that the complexity of the questions must be adapted to the situation of the person being interrogated, and this may be necessary in the case of Ricardo. Salgado will break down a complex question into several simpler questions to give you a chance to answer and give you more time than usual to answer.

The psychiatrist said expert tests showed Salgado “does not have very severe impairments” in cognitive function and is able to understand complex questions, with memory difficulties being more prominent, especially the most recent one, with the defense once again. citing Salgado’s ability to answer simple questions such as his age.

“It is observed that, obviously, in the context of complexity, this person with this disease unfortunately does not have the ability to answer questions and give answers with minimal consistency. Therefore, in defense of his dignity, which we will always do, (…) The defense must protect him from such interrogation,” the lawyer told reporters, noting that lawyers cannot allow their client to be subjected to “a circus, an embarrassment.” “

Ricardo Salgado, former president of Grupo Espirito Santo, is responsible for active corruption for illegal activities, active corruption and money laundering.