Accused called friends on night of murder, court hears
A man accused of murder called his two best friends back home in Brazil on FaceTime and told them he had killed his ex-girlfriend before then turning his phone camera around to show them her body on a bed, a trial has heard.
Miller Pacheco, 32, of Formiga in Minas Gerais, Brazil is on trial at a sitting of the Central Criminal Court in Cork, charged with the murder of his girlfriend of five years Bruna Fonseca.
Ms Fonseca, 28, was found dead in a bed in a flat in Liberty Street in Cork city centre on New Year's Day, 2023.
She moved to Ireland with her niece in September of 2022 in search of a "better life".
Mr Pacheco relocated to Ireland in November 2022 to be reunited with Ms Fonseca.
However, the couple, who grew up in the same town, broke up within a few days of his arrival in Cork.
Pedro Enrique Eduardo gave evidence by video link today.
He said that on New Year’s Eve 2022, his friend Mr Pacheco sent him videos of Ms Fonseca kissing a man.
Mr Pacheco also texted Mr Eduardo saying: "Forgive me for everything. You are the best of all of us. You and Felipe."
Mr Eduardo said he and his friend Felipe were at a New Year’s party in their native Brazil when he received the message.
The men were concerned about Mr Pacheco and called him.
Mr Eduardo said that a few minutes into the FaceTime call Mr Pacheco told them that he had "killed Bruna".
Mr Eduardo said that it was hard to comprehend what his friend was saying.
"We couldn’t believe it, so he (Mr Pacheco) went and showed us Bruna lying on her belly. She was covered with a blanket. Felipe turned his face not to look.
"What I can remember is that she (Ms Fonseca) was lying on the bed. Her hair was covering her face and there was a blanket coming up to her shoulder," he said.
Mr Eduardo contacted a first cousin of the deceased who was living in Cork. She in turn called gardaí.
He said that he had never known his friend Mr Pacheco to be violent.
He also told the court that Mr Pacheco had "sold everything" and "left everything behind in his life" to go to Ireland.
Mr Eduardo said that "if he was not mistaken (the breakup with Ms Fonseca occurred) less than a week" after Mr Pacheco moved to Ireland.
He said that his friend had been depressed in 2022 and that during the New Year’s Eve FaceTime call he was concerned he might end his life.
Felipe Jose Costa Peroni said in his video that at 2.15am (Brazilian time) on New Year’s Day 2023 he received a message from Mr Pacheco which read: "I’m sorry — there is no way to come back to Brazil."
Mr Costa Peroni said Mr Pacheco had been the best man at his wedding and the pair had known each other since they were children.
He said that he and Mr Eduardo decided to FaceTime Mr Pacheco.
"I remember telling him (Mr Pacheco) that he should come back to Brazil and he said he had 'killed Bruna’," he said.
"We got in to shock. We couldn’t believe the news," Mr Costa Peroni added.
Mr Costa Peroni said that his wife Ludmilia walked into the room. He decided to leave the phone call to contact Ms Fonseca’s cousin.
"I had (Ludmillia) stay on the phone (with Mr Pacheco). We were afraid he would commit suicide. He had his hands on his forehead. He was shaking his head and crying," he said.
He said that Mr Pacheco was "very down" in 2022 — possibly because he and Ms Fonseca had broken up for a period in Brazil and also arising out of her booking a plane ticket to Ireland.
Ludmillia Milo Faria also gave evidence by video link.
She said she walked into the room where her husband and friend were FaceTiming Mr Pacheco. She said that Mr Pacheco then turned his camera to show them a body on a bed.
"I remember seeing a body on a bed. It was covered. It appeared her hair was falling on the bed. The body was covered by a blanket," she said.
Ms Milo Faria said that she stayed on the phone with Mr Pacheco so that "he wouldn’t make another mistake".
Meanwhile, Katie Silva told the court that she first met Mr Pacheco at an English class in Cork in December 2022.
He introduced her to Ms Fonseca.
She said that she spoke with Mr Pacheco on Christmas Day 2022 when he was "angry, upset and frustrated" about the breakup with Ms Fonseca.
"He called her bad names — I don’t want to say the names. He said that Bruna does not care about his feelings," she said.
Ms Silva said that Mr Pacheco had seen text messages between Ms Fonseca and an Argentinian man.
"He said he wants to kill him. I told him to move on. He asked if she (Ms Fonseca) had been with anyone else. I said, ‘she is single, leave her alone.’ I did not meet him (the man from Argentina) but Bruna talked to me about him," she said.
The jurors also heard evidence from Alamo Morais who said that he danced with and kissed Ms Fonseca at the New Year’s Eve party in the Oyster Tavern in Cork city.
He said at one point during the evening he noticed a man staring at him.
"I did not understand. In Brazil, people don’t stare at you for no reason. Usually people at a party don’t stare at you for no reason. I was kissing her, hugging her and talking about the New Year. At that point I was happy and enjoying myself," he said.
The jury also heard evidence from Mercy University Hospital Radiographer Barbara O’Sullivan.
At the time of her death Ms Fonseca was employed at the hospital.
Ms O’Sullivan said that she was approached by a man at the hospital on Christmas Day 2022.
He showed her a picture of a woman and asked if he knew Ms Fonseca. She said that the man was "hanging around" the hospital and seemed "erratic and distressed".
The trial continues tomorrow in front of a jury of seven women and five men.
It is being presided over by Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford.
Ms Fonseca was a college graduate who had trained as a librarian. Her family members are in attendance at the trial. The accused man worked as an engineer before he moved to Ireland.
