An autopsy into the death in a Loulé carpark of a homeless man from the Ukraine has discovered what police suspected all along: he was murdered, very possibly by the two friends who ‘discovered the body’ early on the morning of April 6 (click here).
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The men told police at the time that they found their friend alive, and that he told them he had been attacked before dying in front of them.
This now looks unlikely, as the 54-year-old man’s death came from being strangled in a choke hold, explains Correio da Manhã today – thus he would have been in no position to talk to anyone in the final minutes of life.
The autopsy also found “various broken ribs, and perforations to a lung” – presumably due to the man’s attackers “jumping on top of him”, says CM.
The three men were already known for drunken brawls round campfires they built in the evenings in the dirt-track carpark near Loulé football stadium.
They were described as living in a couple of cars in the carpark for quite some time.
Since the Ukrainian’s death, his two ‘friends’ have sold his car for scrap, writes CM, and divided the money between them.
The men – one from Moldavia, the other from the Ukraine – have now been made “arguidos” (official suspects) in the police murder investigation.
CM reports that they are due to be presented before a judge to hear bail conditions, says the paper.
UPDATE FRIDAY APRIL 21:
Both men have been remanded into custody, pending trial.
