Dozens of children in Lisbon are now feared to have been victims of 31-year-old Scouts leader and alleged paedophile João Martins, who was arrested in September and found hanged in his prison cell a month later.
The man was caught during a large international operation by Europol, which found a number of sexually explicit images of child pornography on Martins’ computer. The images, showing girls between the ages of four and 10, also included some of Martins alongside the victims.
Authorities including Portugal’s PJ police are still investigating the case to conclude if Martins was in fact tied to any paedophilia groups.
But for most people who knew João Martins, he was just a “normal guy”. Besides being the head of the Lobitos group of Lisbon’s Belém Scouts, Martins was also involved in extracurricular activities in three schools in the area of Restelo and led an art class at a social solidarity institution in Carnide.
“No one could have guessed,” friends of Martins told the Portuguese press. “Everyone was very fond of him.” He was seen as a “nice young man” who led a modest life.
João Martins was found dead in his cell on October 30 just under a month after his arrest. Some media sources report that Martins left an apology letter to his family beside him.
Portugal’s Scouts Association (CNE) is now being accused by the parents of covering up Martins’ crimes but it has since said it was the PJ police who kept them from telling parents what was happening as it could “compromise their investigation”.
PJ are now contacting parents of the children in the photos to provide support, while the international investigation continues.
