A suspect arrested in connection with the murder of an actor in Rio de Janeiro has told police that the victim’s fugitive friend used to make phone calls to suffocate him before his body was locked in a metal safe. wood buried under an outbuilding.
Jeander da Silva, 29, was arrested on Friday after trying to flee from cops in Santíssimo, a neighborhood on the west side of Rio de Janeiro, 11 days after Jefferson Machado, 44, was found six feet under the concrete floor of the property.
Bruno de Souza, 37, was still at large on Friday. His lawyer held a press conference on Thursday and said he was unsure whether the former TV Globo producer would turn himself in.
The two men are charged with homicide and concealment of a corpse.
Rio de Janeiro police arrested a suspect linked to the murder of actor Jefferson Machado (pictured) on Friday, but are still looking for a second person, a friend, who happens to be linked to the crime.
Jeander da Silva (pictured) told Rio de Janeiro police Jefferson Machado was strangled with a telephone wire that the victim’s fugitive friend Bruno de Souza had used
Lawyers unsure if Bruno de Souza will turn himself in after Rio de Janeiro police obtain arrest warrant
Brazilian newspaper Metropoles reported Friday that de Souza may have fled the country because he was still in possession of his Portuguese passport after authorities confiscated his Brazilian document.
Da Silva told cops that he and de Souza first drugged Machado before his body was placed inside the trunk that had been removed from his home in Rio de Janeiro’s West Zone neighborhood of Campo Grande, where he was apparently killed.
He also revealed that de Souza was lying when he attributed the murder to a fictitious person, a local gang member named Marcelo. He discredited de Souza for saying they were involved in a sexual relationship with the victim.
Rio de Janeiro police obtained an arrest warrant for the two men after inconsistencies were discovered during their interviews.
De Souza told investigators he said he, da Silva, and Marcelo had sex with Machado before leaving to go downstairs. But da Silva claimed he never had sex with the victim.
The Brazilian actor was found dead in a wooden chest buried six feet under an outhouse in Rio de Janeiro
Police say Jefferson Machado was murdered after discovering that his friend, former TV Globo producer Bruno de Souza, had lied while helping him land an acting role on a soap opera. The victim’s mother revealed that de Souza was paid around $5,200 to help her find the job
Asked about Machado’s death, da Silva told police he was in the shower before noticing he was dead. De Souza said Machado’s body was placed in the trunk when da Silva and Marcelo got off.
De Souza told investigators he left the outhouse while da Silva was digging the hole. Da Silva told police that he and de Souza left the outhouse together after covering the hole with concrete.
Civil police in Rio de Janeiro received a report of Machado’s disappearance on February 4, but suggested he was murdered in late January.
Investigators allege Machado was killed after discovering he had been scammed by de Souza.
Rio de Janeiro police arrested a suspect linked to the murder of actor Jefferson Machado (pictured) on Friday, but are still looking for a second person, a friend, who happens to be linked to the crime.
Machado had contacted de Souza asking for help with an acting role he was interested in in a soap opera that was to air on TV Globo. At one point he sent an audio message – which was obtained by the police – in which he told de Souza that it was his grandfather’s dream to see him perform on television.
A week ago, his mother, Maria das Dores, told the Fantastico news magazine that he had made three payments totaling $5,200 to de Souza, who promised to help him lock the role.
“You have such a strong dream inside of you that the impression is that you (are) blind to reality,” das Dores said of his second son, who in 2022 had a role in the Record TV soap opera, “Reis”.
