Women reported assaults allegedly committed by 32-year-old jiu-jitsu fighter Lucas Portela Fontana in an apartment building in Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Among them are Célia, 81, and Dilva Barbosa, a domestic worker.
Célia said the neighbor broke into her apartment and assaulted her. She suffered a traumatic brain injury and remained hospitalized until Saturday, the 7th. Another resident, Vera Lúcia Nascimento, said he knocked down her door and threatened her family.
Dilva tried to go upstairs to help Vera’s bedridden mother, but was attacked in the elevator. Cameras captured the assaults, and the doorman helped her escape.
The fighter’s pretrial detention was ordered on Saturday, the 7th. He faces charges of attempted femicide, and police are investigating whether the attacks were gender-based. The defense said the attacks were a severe reaction to controlled medications, but no toxicology test was conducted to determine whether he was under the influence of any substance.
