Former councilor is sentenced to more than 45 years in prison for strangling his partner in BA

The former councilor of Aurelino Leal, in the south of Bahia, João Pereira Sena, known as João da Água, was sentenced to 45 years, four months and 12 days in prison for the feminicide of his partner, Cleonice Pereira dos Santos, aged 47.

The trial took place on Tuesday (3), at the Jury Court of the Ubaitaba Criminal Court. João Pereira Sena was a councilor between 2009 and 2012.

According to a report by TV Santa Cruz, an affiliate of Rede Bahia, the former parliamentarian was also sentenced to six months in detention and the payment of a fine for procedural fraud. The defense said it will appeal the decision.

The crime took place on December 31, 2025, in the rural area of ​​Aurelino Leal. According to investigations, Cleonice was killed by strangulation. After the crime, João Pereira Sena took his partner's body to the hospital and claimed that she had suffered a sudden illness.

During the trial, the jurors recognized, by majority vote, that the former councilor was responsible for the attacks that caused the victim's death.

The Sentencing Council also concluded that the crime was committed in the context of domestic and family violence, using asphyxiation and recourse that made Cleonice's defense difficult.

The former parliamentarian, who is 68 years old, denied committing the crime during interrogation. The defense asked for acquittal, but the theory was rejected by the jurors.

In addition to feminicide, João Pereira Sena was convicted of procedural fraud. According to the trial minutes, the jurors understood that he tried to alter the crime scene to make the investigation more difficult.

According to the decision, the former councilor hid his companion's cell phone, transported her body to Aurelino Leal Hospital and presented a false version about the circumstances of her death, claiming that Cleonice had suffered a sudden illness.

In the sentence, the judge highlighted that João Pereira Sena had a history of physical attacks against the victim.

The judge also considered the foul motive, related to property disagreements between the couple, as an aggravating factor. According to the decision, the convict refused to pass on to his partner values ​​resulting from the negotiation of a plot of land.

The court ordered that the sentence be served initially in a closed regime and denied the former councilor the right to appeal in freedom. As a result, he will remain in prison.

João Pereira Sena was arrested on January 23, 2026, in the Catulé region, rural area of ​​Aurelino Leal, during a Civil Police operation.

At the time, the police reported that the investigations began after Cleonice was admitted to the city hospital, on the night of December 31, 2025, with signs of strangulation.

During the investigation, investigators identified signs of femicide and a history of domestic and family violence committed by the suspect against his partner.

In the operation that resulted in the arrest, teams from the Technical and Tactical Investigation Support Group (Gatti/Costa do Cacau) seized a cell phone and a motorcycle with theft restrictions.