A Portuguese judge has postponed the scheduled court testimony of Judiciary Police inspectors in connection with alleged unauthorized wiretaps during the Football Leaks investigation. The proceedings hit a procedural hurdle when the lead investigator on the case invoked his status as an official suspect in a related proceeding, declining to answer questions before the court.
Judge Postpones Inspector Testimony in Lisbon Court
André Santos delayed the hearing that was set for Friday in Lisbon, where Judiciary Police inspectors were ordered to explain investigative procedures from the high-profile cybercrime inquiry. Five elements of the Judiciary were summoned to explain the case of the alleged illegal wiretap. The inquiry ultimately led to the criminal conviction of computer hacker Rui Pinto and his former lawyer, Aníbal Pinto.
Football Leaks: Há novas suspeitas de actuação criminosa de inspectores da PJ no caso Rui Pinto https://t.co/2RRg5dWeEy
Among those summoned were inspectors José Tiago, Moisés Martins, Fernando Figueiras, João Jardim, and José Amador. The testimonies were requested as part of an ongoing trial involving Judiciary Police inspector Aida Freitas, who stands accused of making false statements during judicial proceedings tied to the Football Leaks case.
Lead Investigator Invokes Suspect Status
Inspector José Amador, who served as an investigator for the Football Leaks file, formally requested to be excused from testifying. Court documents show Amador invoked his legal classification as an arguido, or formal suspect, in a parallel inquiry concerning identical allegations of false declarations.
Under Portuguese law, witnesses are legally compelled to tell the truth and cannot invoke the right to silence. However, individuals holding suspect status are granted protections against self-incrimination. Because Amador faces scrutiny over similar courtroom testimony regarding the same investigative actions, the court accepted his request to withhold statements during Friday’s session.
Disputed Surveillance Tactics at an A5 Service Station
The central controversy revolves around a meeting in October 2015 at a service station along the A5 motorway connecting Lisbon and Cascais. The gathering brought together lawyer Aníbal Pinto—who represented Rui Pinto—alongside Doyen representative Nélio Lucas and lawyer Pedro Henriques. The men met to address ongoing cyberattacks directed at the investment fund by an individual operating under the pseudonym “Artem Lobuzov.”
While multiple police officers previously testified that no ambient wiretaps were deployed during the surveillance operation, documentation indicates that internal police files sent to Judge Santos point toward unapproved monitoring devices placed on the victim and a cooperating party. An external diligence report dated November 4, 2015, notes that recording equipment was placed on the individuals before a data disk was compiled and handed over to inspector José Amador for the investigation. Documents revealed by NOW indicated that contrary to what several Judiciary inspectors declared in court, the police carried out an ambient wiretap even without a judge’s authorization, since the Public Ministry itself disregarded it.
The unfolding dispute has already delayed sentencing for inspector Aida Freitas, who admitted during earlier testimony that she signed off on a surveillance report without reading it or hearing the intercepted conversations directly. With multiple police operational records under judicial review and additional testimony pending, the court continues to examine whether investigative teams bypassed statutory authorization limits during the pursuit of the Football Leaks defendants.
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