Lisbon police officers are accused of torturing immigrants and homeless people: ‘Welcome to Portugal’

FILE: Police officers stand guard in Lisbon, Portugal, on March 28, 2023 REUTERS/Pedro Nunes Two police officers in Portugal have been accused of torturing immigrants and homeless people. They would also have shared images of the acts in a message group with other police officers. The case led to the opening of an investigation, local authorities reported this Friday (16). ✅ Follow the g1 international news channel on WhatsApp The two agents, in their 20s, were arrested in July last year and remain in custody. They are responsible for torture, acts of cruelty and abuse of power, according to the indictment signed by the Lisbon Public Prosecutor’s Office. One of the officers was also accused of rape, robbery and forgery. The document describes an episode in which agents beat a Moroccan immigrant inside a police station for several hours. According to the accusation, he was forced to kiss the police officers’ boots while one of them shouted, in English: “Welcome to Portugal!”. “The victims were systematically chosen from among particularly vulnerable people, that is, homeless, physically weak, with economic difficulties,” wrote prosecutor Felismina Franco. “This circumstance reveals acts of pure and gratuitous violence directed at those who were unable to offer resistance.” The Ministry of the Interior told Reuters that it “deeply regrets this behavior and all actions that infringe the rights of citizens”, and said that the episodes do not represent the general conduct of police professionals. The General Inspectorate opened a separate investigation to investigate the possible participation of other police officers, the ministry said. The Portuguese branch of Amnesty International said it had received information about other cases of torture. According to the organization, the sharing of images and messages about abuse in chats and social networks “demonstrates a huge sense of impunity”, although it highlighted that the complaints came from within the police community itself. Amnesty International called for the creation of an external and independent police oversight body, in addition to expanding the use of cameras in police stations, vehicles and body cameras during stops. MORE

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