Forensic analysis deletes the doctor in the case of Porto Porto from the 19th century

A recent forensic reanalysis has supported a 130-year-old poisoning case, the exemption of Dr. Urbino de Freitas, an 19th-century doctor in Porto, who was convicted of poisoning his relatives to inherit the family’s assets. Criminal researcher Ricardo Dinis-Oliveira revealed that compounds found in the toxicological analyzes of the 19th century, who incriminated Dr. de Freitas, are not present in the body of the alleged victim. “They should have been found now, with the technology of the 21st century,” said Dinis-Oliveira, According to Expresso.

Dinis -Oliveiira, a researcher at the University Institute of Health Sciences – Cespu, undertook a reconstruction of the historical case. Collecting historical documents and locating the 130-year-old body, he could perform modern forensic analyzes. According to Correio da Manhă, after discovering the victim’s body in a good state of preservation, he obtained authorizations for autopsy.

The initial belief of Dr. de Freitas was based on toxicological evidence collected at that time, which involved him in the poisoning of his nephew. He was accused of poisoning two relatives to inherit the family’s wealth and was sentenced to eight years in prison, followed by twenty years of exile, first in Angola and then in Brazil. However, Dinis-Oliveira believes that the forensic specialist who collected the evidence at that time did not know what to do. “The 19th-century forensic specialist may not have had a trained eye,” he said, According to Sic Notícias.

Dinis-Oliveira explained that the rot of a corpse can be confused with many substances. He stressed that these substances do not disappear over time. “The 19th-century forensic specialist may have thought he found something when he was actually another,” he said. This increases the possibility that the results of the toxicological tests have been intentionally manufactured or accidentally identified.

In the reconstruction of the case, Dinis-Oliveira told Lusa that he began to suspect defects in the original toxicological tests. The medical -legal evidence that once led to the conviction of Dr. de Freitas proved uncertain in accordance with the current standards. Reanaliza concluded that today, the doctor will not be convicted.

The remnants of Dr. de Freitas are interrupted in a tomb of the family in the Ordem Da Lapa cemetery, the oldest cemetery in the city of Porto. The tomb also hosts the remains of the writer Camilo Castelo Branco. According to Expresso, the famous novelist could have asked José António de Freitas Fortuna, a businessman from Rua Das Flores, to host the remains of the family tomb.

The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.