Businessman Rene Nogueira Jr., accused of murdering garbage collector Ludimir de Souza Fernandez, searched for “dead street sweeper” on the Internet after the crime. The information appears in the final pleadings of the Minas Gerais State Prosecutor’s Office (MPMG) about the case that took place in August in Belo Horizonte.
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According to the document, the investigation concluded that the shooting of the street sweeper – carried out with a gun belonging to the accused’s wife, Police Chief Ana Paula Balbino Nogueira – “was not accidental.” Prosecutors also highlighted that letters were found from Junior addressed to the representative asking her “not to hand over the weapon used in the crime.”
“The crime was committed for a futile reason, resulting from the fact that the accused was dissatisfied with the partial obstruction of traffic, and showed disdain and notorious indifference towards the workers who carried out a worthy and relevant activity there, including the woman who worked as a driver. This circumstance highlights the unjustification of the assault, revealing the extreme disparity between the motive and the resulting result,” says the Public Prosecution.
“At police headquarters and in court, the accused denied authorizing the murder,” prosecutors stated in the document.
However, in a letter issued two weeks after the crime, Junior described the shooting as an “accident.” The businessman also admitted to the authorities that he opened fire on Ludimir, during what he called a “traffic altercation.”
The case occurred in the Vista Alegre region, west of the capital, Minas Gerais. The businessman was driving a BYD car when around 9 a.m. he approached a garbage truck that was coming in the opposite direction. The investigation revealed that the car driver threatened the truck driver and told her, “If she collides with the car, he will shoot her in the face.”
One witness said he asked Junior if he was going to shoot the driver and told him to go on his way after the threat.
“So, the defendant stopped the car and said, ‘You suspect me.’ He explained that the gun magazine fell to the ground, and the advertiser felt something strange and warned the victim that the defendant was armed. He asked if the defendant was going to shoot the operator, at the moment he was picking up the magazine that had fallen to the ground. He said that the defendant aimed and opened his legs to shoot, and when he was shot, Ludimir actually said they hit him.” MP document.
Using security cameras, police officers were able to identify the make, model and initials on the license plate of the vehicle being used. The garbage truck driver who was working with Ludimir at the time of the crime presented another letter and the last two digits of the license plate, which allowed the car to be identified.