The trial of Shusha (Ruben Oliveira), considered Portugal’s biggest drug trafficker, and the other 18 accused of cocaine trafficking, criminal association and money laundering will begin on Tuesday at the Central Criminal Court of Lisbon.
For what CM You know, the main defendants, including “Syuksa” and his brother Dersio, called a total of 137 witnesses.
According to the department’s indictment, the criminal group, led by Ruben Oliveira, had “close ties” to drug trafficking organizations in Brazil and Colombia and imported large quantities of cocaine from South America since mid-2019.
by minute
Updated April 2, 2024 | 16:46
Gurvinder Slingh, an Indian who ran a grocery store, explains that on February 14, “he went to work at 9:30 am to receive goods from the supplier.”
He mentions that Ari, Luis Ferreira, asked him to pick up the cargo from the airport, but clarifies that he “didn’t ask for more papaya.” He justifies his order by saying that it was Luis Ferreira who ordered the fruit because “they were much cheaper” and that he was unable to pick it up because he was at a funeral.
“He said that three vans were needed for this transport. But usually there were only three pallets,” he explains.
“If you send the goods without my knowledge, I will not have the money to pay for the goods,” explains Gurvinder Slingh.
He states that he trusted Jose Cabral, described in the indictment as one of those who received and transported the drugs because, in his words, “Ari asked for it.”
“I didn’t know who Jose Cabral was. He simply said that some goods had arrived in my name. I tried to talk to Mr Luis Ferreira, but he told me that he was at a funeral,” says Gurvinder.
When asked by the judge why he trusted Luis Ferreira again if he was already disappointed with the situation with the fruit pulp, the Indian replied: “I explained several times that the order was placed in my name, but I did not place it. I provided two of my vans. They rented another one.”
The judge questions the Indian again, this time about how he didn’t suspect anything, especially people he didn’t know, like José Cabral.
Gurvinder explains that Jose gave him 4,500 euros, and he in turn gave it to his employee. The two employees who went to collect the order on behalf of the Indian had no contact with Jose Cabral.
He explains that since they had “José Cabral’s van number”, they knew each other when they received the order, since José had taken the “ad van”, from Europcar to be exact.
Two mobile phones were confiscated that day: a red one that belonged to the company and a personal iPhone mobile phone. There are also warrant documents.
On your mobile phones you can see that you have exchanged messages with Ari Luis Ferreira. The Indian claims that Ari “sent him a photo of his IBAN to pay him 2,500 euros for the goods”, but claims that he “did not ask for anything and did not pay.”
Break in the session.
Gurvinder take into account that cI always communicated with Ruben personally, face to face. “I only called the day I received an order that wasn’t for me,” he says.
A On February 14, 2022, messages were exchanged.
“I didn’t talk to anyone else on these communication networks. Only with Ruben. “I received a message from Ruben asking me to run between 5:30 and 6:00 pm and I deleted it because I thought it was weird,” he says.
“You better get out of here,” the message said.
Start being heard now Gurvinder Slngh (who has a translator).
He says he has known Ruben Oliveira (“Chux”) since 2009 and Luis Ferreira since 2021. “I knew Ruben dos Olivais Sula because he was a customer at the supermarket. Even his family went there,” he says.
He met Luis through Shusha: “Ruben introduced him as a fruit seller and said that it was cheaper with him.”
After the presentation, he mentions that he placed an order with Luis in 2021. In the first and second orders, he ordered the fathers to come, but he did not place the last orders. He didn’t give the order.
“I did not order the fruit pulp that is in process, nor the latest order of papaya. Only the first two papayas. Mr. Luis Ferreira had the company details to open the client’s file at the warehouse where he ordered the fruit to be shipped. Customs announced that the products needed to be picked up. I did not know. But I followed them,” he explains.
“The goods were damaged. I asked them several times to pick up the order. [Luís] He said he was going to get up but didn’t come back there anymore. So I called Reuben and told him that they needed to pick up the pulp that was already dripping. Then they went there for acai. I didn’t pay any other fees. Only the first ones. I think Luis Ferreira paid for it,” says Gurwinder.
He says that to open the client’s file, he passed the data to Luis Ferreira, who told him that customs had nothing to worry about because he would handle it. The defendant did not know how to work with customs.
“I was upset with Luis Ferreira because he said he would get up tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow but he wouldn’t come and take it away. My employee emailed the acai company because I wasn’t interested in importing… I didn’t want it anymore,” he says.
He begins by describing what happened on February 14, the day of his arrest.
He says he crossed paths with his friend Jose Cabral in the Angola area at 5 p.m. They agreed to go get something to eat, but Jose had to go to the “airport” first. [uma zona industrial na zona de cargas e descargas] pick up the order. He says he followed his friend in his car, but parked at a roundabout and never entered the so-called “airport”.
Jose Cabral is named in the indictment as one of those who received and transported the drugs.
They agreed to go for lunch in Odivelash, where there was a warehouse where he was going to leave the order.
As he parked poorly on a roundabout, William was approached by a police officer. He had 370 euros. He now explains that the money will be used to pay for some parts for the car, but he was unable to deliver them because no one was in the workshop.
He says he didn’t know what was in the package and never asked what was inside. “I didn’t ask because I already knew he worked in distribution and was in the van,” he says.
“I never saw anything being loaded into a van. I realized what happened only when the other boys were also detained. Now I have no relationship with Jose Cabral,” says William.
Lawyer Jose Cabral asks William why they are not in a relationship now. William responds: “I hold José responsible for the situation I am in. I have nothing to do with this. The police surprised me.”
“I saw José only a few hours later at the judicial police. I don’t know what his reaction was during the arrest,” he concludes.
Today only William and Gurvinder Slngh speak.
Only two defendants will take the stand this Tuesday: William and Gurvinder Slngh, Indian nationals who ran a grocery store called Frutaria Viva (the name of the area to give more credibility) but which served as a hideout for drug dealing.
The drug trade was carried out through the import of bananas. They even made their first batch of tropical fruits, which was fully paid for by Ruben Oliveira (“Xuxa”).
Ruben Oliveira begins by introducing himself with his hands behind his back. He is calm, but gets confused when he says the address. Speak very quietly. He says that he was a businessman and was involved in several activities: he owned a taxi, a bakery and he sold cars.
The hearing begins. “Syuksa” entered the room last. at the Lisbon Central Criminal Court.
Ruben Oliveira’s defense rejects the request to call 130 witnesses, since the deputy requested 55. He also adds that the maximum period of suppression ends not in July, but in December.
The lawyer also claims that “Syusha” had luxury in accordance with his income.
There is currently no major police apparatus outside the court. But CMTV Do you know that the kinesthetic teams of the PSP have already entered the courtroom?
The lawyer for Antonio Freitas, one of the defendants, has already spoken out. He claims that the trial is a fantasy and does not believe that the trial will end in July based on the number of witnesses.
Author: Madalena Sales, Deborah Carvalho This Tanya Laranjo
Source: CM Jornal
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.