The lawyers of the 13 soldiers on the ship Mondego who will be heard this Monday by the Military Judiciary Police, in Lisbon, claim that “there are evidence that have been erased” by the Navy and will ask for proof.
A source linked to the defense told the Lusa agency that “there are evidences that are being erased” and that the ship Mondego “it was all cleaned up” on Wednesday, before the trip to the site of two televisions. A plane loaded with material will have flown to Funchal to allow repairs to the ship, she added.
The source referred that the Portuguese Navy maintains that the ship Mondego was in “condition to leave” for the sea and that this is “proved by an inspection”. But the said inspection was carried out by the Navy, without the presence of any other entities, and based on that, “they started making repairs on board the ship”, he said.
The source assured that on Monday, when the 13 soldiers will be heard at the Military Judiciary Police (PJM), within the scope of a criminal inquiry, the defense lawyers “will ask for evidentiary measures”, hoping that these “do not become unfeasible ” in order to ascertain the discovery of the truth.
The 13 soldiers who refused to board the ship Mondego on the 11th, alleging the vessel’s lack of safety, will be heard in two periods, in the morning (10 am) and in the afternoon (2 pm). They are defended by lawyers Paulo Graça and Garcia Pereira.
Last Thursday, Paulo Graça, in statements to Lusa, considered the statements made by the Navy’s Chief of Staff to be disturbing and criticized the “judgment in the public square” that has been carried out by the Navy. This is because, he justified, Gouveia e Melo “expressed a judgment” on the facts that were committed, having “this judgment been expressed without the target having the opportunity to say of their justice or to defend themselves”.
He then claimed that “the Navy had been passing on a certain version of the facts for five days, without anyone having heard those interested and what they (the 13 soldiers) have to say regarding this situation”.