Female bodybuilder Ellen Campos shot by huge boyfriend who opened fire four times before fleeing, claiming 'self-defense'
THE boyfriend of a tattooed bodybuilder who shot her four times has been jailed for just five years after claiming he acted in self-defence.
Weldrin Lopes claimed that Ellen Campos threatened him before opening fire and leaving the scene bodybuilder for death.
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The victim was Ellen Cristina Otoni Campos shot at her boyfriend's flat in the city of Belo Horizonte, in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, on February 23 last year.
Despite suffering four bullets, she managed to leave the flat and flee downstairs, where she was rescued and taken to hospital.
Belo Horizonte jury Court has now sentenced Weldrin Lopes de Alcantar, 44, to five years and eight months jail.
He will serve his prison sentence in a semi-open regime for attempted femicide.
The jury found that the suspect's actions were motivated by violent emotions as a result of the victim's threats.
According to local media, this resulted in the removal of the qualification for a reduced sentence.
'PRIVILATED AND BLESSED'
Right Thiago Grazziane Gandra said: “The Board of Judgment partially accepted the accusation and decided that the suspect against the victim, Ellen Cristina Otoni Campos, had committed the crime of attempted murder, qualified by femicide and by the means that made the defense of the victim difficult made, with the privilege of violent emotions.”
Ellen previously posted a thank you message to everyone who supported her social media when she celebrated her 38th birthday.
She said to them, “You are the heroes after this victory and this miracle.”
In the post, she also said she felt “privileged and blessed” to have survived and added that 2023 would be a “year of rebirth and much gratitude for life.”
According to reports, 37-year-old Ellen had been waiting for her boyfriend at the front door of his apartment for two hours.
When the alleged attacker, Weldrin Lopes de Alcantara, finally arrived home in the car, they entered the apartment.
FLEE ON FOOT
Residents of the apartment building then reported hearing an argument, followed by approximately seven shots.
Alcantara, 44, then tried to flee by car but the electric gate would not open so he left his car and fled on foot.
He remained at large for days before turning himself in Police on February 27.
During interrogation, the muscular attacker told police that Ellen had threatened him.
He also said he acted in self-defense and claimed he wasn't even Ellen's boyfriend.
Local media quoted him as saying: “She showed up at my house unexpectedly. I didn't expect Ellen there.
ENDANGERED SON
“We've had a few meetings. We have had contact several times, but it never went further than that, precisely because she is a very aggressive and violent person.
“When I said I wanted to distance myself, she threatened me and herself. She even threatened my three-year-old son.”
The boy is said to have been at the scene at the time of the shooting.
De Alcantara's lawyer, Lais Fonseca, has claimed her client accidentally fired the shots while trying to discharge his gun after Ellen tried to grab it.
However, the police did not believe this version of events and arrested De Alcantara in pre-trial detention for attempted femicide.
Doctors said she had wounds on the left side of her jaw, the back of her head, her left shoulder and her left thigh.
What is femicide?
Femicide is generally used to describe the crime of killing a woman or women based on their gender.
It does not exist as a definition in British law, but falls under manslaughter or murder.
In 2015, Brazil passed a new femicide law to address the rise of gender murders.
The country joined 15 other Latin American countries in introducing laws against femicide.
Nadine Gasman, head of the United Nations Women organization in Brazil, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation: “This law characterizes femicide as a serious crime and identifies it as a specific crime against women.
“It's a way to talk about this problem, make it visible by giving it a name and increasing the sanctions for this crime.
'It took a long time before we could say that killing a woman is a different phenomenon.
'Men are murdered in the streets, women are murdered at home.
“Men are killed with guns, women with knives and hands.”
Figures show that in 2022, approximately 1.4 per 100,000 Brazilian women were murdered because of their gender.
Police seized a .38 caliber revolver from the apartment.
The victim is the niece of Reimont Luiz Otoni Santa Barbara, member of the Chamber of Deputies of Brazil for the Workers' Party.
He wrote online: 'Last year, violence rates reached a record high.
“This shows us that we must fight tirelessly to strengthen public policies that embrace, defend and raise awareness. It's about women's lives.
“I ask everyone to advocate for the speedy recovery of my dear Ellen and all women who are victims of sexism.”
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