App drivers gathered in a procession in honor of their colleague Pâmela Letícia Nolastro Cunha, aged 29, who was found dead on Thursday afternoon (8) in Piratininga (SP), after being requested for a race that left Bauru. A suspect involved in the crime was arrested.
The drivers met around 9 am, at Praça Machado de Melo, in Bauru (SP). The motorcade left the city and went to Piratininga, where the young woman's burial took place at 10 am, in the Municipal Cemetery. Friends and family said goodbye to Pâmela.
In an interview with TV TEM, the victim's father lamented his daughter's death. "It's complicated, but it will pass, God willing. God will demand it from him, and it won't stay like this. What she went through, he will go through much more", says Rubens Nolastro.
Piratininga City Hall declared three days of official mourning for Pâmela's death. The Municipal Administration stated that it sympathizes with family and friends. "The sadness that affects the bereaved family today is shared by the entire Piratiningan people, who are united in feelings of regret at such a painful departure," the city hall said in a statement.
The Civil Police of Bauru (SP) arrested a 23-year-old man early this Friday morning, identified as João Vitor de Andrade Lima, suspected of involvement in the robbery of the driver. Pâmela was found dead on Thursday afternoon on a dirt road near the Coffee Museum. Her body had marks from stab wounds.
The investigation showed that João Vitor, who lives in Jardim Redentor, in Bauru, left the victim's stolen vehicle parked in the same neighborhood. The vehicle was examined and found with a large amount of blood on the driver's seat, as well as traces on the roof. Police officers from the 3rd Homicide Precinct of the Specialized Criminal Investigations Division (Deic) located the suspect at his girlfriend's house, also in Jardim Redentor. According to the delegate responsible for the case, two of the victim's cell phones were not located.
The suspect confessed that he would receive R$2,000 to take the stolen vehicle to Bauru, using his registration on the app to request a ride for the victim. The man was temporarily detained by the police, who are continuing the investigation to find out whether the suspect was the one who killed Pâmela and to find other possible suspects in the crime.
In a statement, Uber lamented Pâmela's death. According to the company, they are collaborating with the competent authorities and emphasize that all trips on the platform are covered by insurance. He also said that "the account of the man who requested the race has been temporarily deactivated while investigations into the case take place", says the text.
The app driver had been missing since Wednesday (7), when she left home to go to work. According to the Civil Police, the victim's body was found with marks of violence. Pâmela's family filed a missing person report shortly after losing contact with the young woman. Relatives were surprised by the fact that her cell phone was turned off and that the vehicle was missing.
Messages sent in a WhatsApp group by Pâmela helped the Civil Police find the app driver's body and car. In an interview with TV TEM, Stefânia Nolastro Cunha, the victim's sister, reported that the alert about Pâmela's whereabouts began to emerge after contact with other drivers. “Suddenly we started meeting her friends who are also Uber drivers and the tracks started,” explained Stefânia.
Stefânia explained that her sister left for work around 6am on Wednesday and kept in touch with relatives until around 2pm. After that, the family lost communication with the driver. Upon realizing that she had not returned home, her relatives went to the police station on Thursday morning to file a missing person report, until then with no clue as to her location.
In a print of the conversation, Pâmela reported that she had been with a passenger for ten minutes in the Café Museum area and that he was facing difficulties paying for the fare, in addition to having pending issues. The driver also sent the exact location of where she was. In the conversation, Pâmela wrote in her last message: "I ended up here at the coffee museum in Piratininga. I've been here with the guy for 10 minutes. And he says he can't get into the bank. I'm here with the car waiting."
