Rui Pinto returns to court with an “uncertain” future – DW – 03/01/2023
The Central Criminal Court of Lisbon resumes this Wednesday (04.01) for the final allegations the judgment of Rui Pinto, in the context of the “Footbal Leaks” and “Luanda Leeks” cases, the latter involving high figures of the Angolan elite.
The Portuguese hacker has been on trial since September 4, 2020 and is accused of 90 crimes, including improper access to computer systems.
During the statements he made before the judges last November, Rui Pinto, 34 years old, assumed he was solely responsible for the information released by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) on the financial scandal “Luanda Leaks”, which placed businesswoman Isabel dos Santos takes up arms with Angolan justice allegedly for crimes of corruption and money laundering.
no more enthusiasm
Francisco Teixeira da Mota, one of Rui Pinto’s lawyers, won after the last hearing that, despite the complexity of this process, his client has already given emotions to the court and the Public Ministry (MP).
“He responded point by point to the accusation and provided the clarifications to the Public Prosecutor’s Office. [Depois] I understood that I didn’t have to provide more nor be subject to more interrogations – namely by lawyers and assistants. Because the court is one thing, the Public Ministry is another”, he stressed.
In one of the last trial sessions, the Portuguese hacker also claimed to be the only whistleblower responsible for the information that gave rise to “Luanda Leaks”. Rui Pinto confirmed, for example, that he extracted documents from the PLMJ Law Firm which, at the time, represented the interests of the Angolan businesswoman in Portugal.
The young man stressed that his interest in “scouring” the lawyers’ website was aimed at understanding the intricacies of the Angolan businesswoman’s illicit business.
“Many of these processes had nothing to do with the”Football Leaks”, but were media processes of public interest”, he referred before the judges, alluding that “the Angolan kleptocracy was sucking the goods of the people”. The information extracted was then handed over to the ICIJ.
Portuguese justice is not prepared
Speaking to DW, jurist Rui Verde considers that Rui Pinto’s fate is unpredictable, despite his collaboration with the Portuguese Justice.
“Rui Pinto’s future is in the hands of the judges, who have a generally inflexible, rigid law to apply. It will essentially be a matter of common sense”, he comments. “Obviously, the conclusion may have been reached during the trial that he has not committed any crime and the matter is resolved by an acquittal, or that the crimes are serious and a fine or a minimum suspended sentence will settle the matter,” he said. “If not, what we have is confusion, because Portuguese law is not prepared for these cases”, admitted the jurist.
As for Isabel dos Santos, the Portuguese analyst has the suspicion that the daughter of former president José Eduardo dos Santos has reached the end of the line, because everything seems to indicate that she will have to face criminal prosecution.
“The most recent statements by the Attorney General [da República] of Angola are in this sense. We will enter a phase of extreme judicialization of her process. And this means that, very likely, judicial measures will be taken to appear in court in Angola. They will most likely come out as confirmation soon,” she hopes.
empire collapsed
The academic argues that Isabel dos Santos’ empire as a businesswoman has collapsed. It lost, for example, the UNITEL company and the supermarkets in Angola. In Portugal, although she has some real estate as part of her fortune, she hardly has any significant shareholder position in the banking, energy or telecommunications sectors.
“The question will now focus on the defense of the criminal process which, in my opinion, is already two years or more behind schedule”, he lamented.
According to Rui Verde, the eldest daughter of José Eduardo dos Santos will be able to obtain “a small benefit” regarding some advanced crimes, such as fraud, tax fraud or abuse of trust – under the amnesty law still under discussion in Angola, the which does not cover money laundering and corruption.
Rui Pinto, creator of “Football Leaks”, has been free since August 7, 2020, due to his collaboration with the Judiciary Police (PJ).
For security reasons, the young man is under the control of the police and inserted in the witness protection program, in an undisclosed location.
Rui Pinto returns to the court bar for the final arguments, on the 4th, 5th and 6th of this month, and only after that will he know his sentence, according to the Portuguese Justice.