Appeal court reduces Madureira’s jail term to 3 years, 4 months | OneFootball

The Porto Court of Appeal reduced Fernando Madureira's effective prison sentence to three years and four months—a reduction of five months from the initial sentence—and acquitted Fábio Sousa of all charges. The decision also reduced the sentences of the other defendants by about three months each, after the court dismissed one of the assault charges from the first instance.

Fernando Madureira, former leader of the Super Dragões, had been sentenced to three years and nine months in prison; his defense appealed, seeking acquittal or, alternatively, suspension of the sentence. Other defendants who also appealed include Sandra Madureira, Hugo Carneiro (known as Polaco), Vítor and Bruno Aleixo, José Pedro Pereira, and Vítor Catão.

Conversely, the Public Prosecutor's Office and FC Porto appealed to request harsher penalties. The Public Prosecutor's Office sought nine years in prison for Madureira, effective sentences for Sandra Madureira and other defendants, as well as the conviction of Fernando Saul, former liaison officer to the club's supporters.

The decision was made on the eve of the maximum two-year preventive detention period to which Fernando Madureira is subject.

During the appeal hearing on January 21, the Madureira couple's lawyer, Miguel Marques de Oliveira, argued there were "evident contradictions between the evidence produced and the final decision" and claimed that "there was never any plan or intention to curtail freedom or provoke fear," according to the defense, it was a desire to avoid a "public humiliation of Pinto da Costa." The defense added that the assaults at the General Assembly were spontaneous and that "Fernando Madureira even contributed to pacifying the environment."

The defenses of the other defendants also presented their arguments. Gonçalo Nabais, representing Vítor and Bruno Aleixo, argued that Bruno's assault constituted an act of "self-defense" in reaction to an attack on his father. Adélia Moreira, lawyer for José Pedro Pereira, criticized the application of the law related to sports violence, stating that the General Assembly discussed "statutes" and not sports, and pointed out "errors in the judgment that reveal a lack of care by the court."

FC Porto's lawyer, Sofia Ribeiro Branco, countered the defendants' appeals, accusing the defenses of making "selective interpretations of the facts" with the aim of "normalizing and excusing the behaviors" and concluded that "if the judgment was flawed, it was for being insufficient."

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.